The Epicinium
by One-Bird-One-Stone
Summary: Did the kiss mean anything? To Rey it did. Did the kiss mean anything? To Ben it did. How will the others react to this newfound romance, is it even newfound? Is the war even over? Will Rey come to terms with her feelings? Ben is used to having power, but can he handle the power of being able to break Rey's heart? Find out. (SPOILERS and REYLO)
1. The Epicinium

**If this story doesn't take off I will kill it. I already have put way to much work into it for it not to be successful. I have a few other ideas for this one, but please check out my story "Home?" its mostly about Rey.**

**But anyways,**

**Its called _The Epicinium_** **which is Latin for "Aftermath"**

**This is a Reylo. I decided since I was bored to keeping writing. Hope you like it!**

**This will probably turn into a lemon at some point**

**It will take place after the end of TROS.**

**So, spoilers duh.**

**Read, review and follow for updates. The more you follow and comment the harder I work.**

**Thanks for reading, - London**

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Rey lay there. Dead? _No, she couldn't be. Is she? _Ben thought as he stumbled towards him. He hiss, and clutched his left leg, staggering towards the girl who had saved him. Maybe, not literally saved him, but saved his soul. And he could not let that savoir die. Ignoring the burning pain is leg, Ben marched on. Palpatine was dead, but was his granddaughter?

"Rey..!?" Ben had finally reached her, and what he saw made his heart sink. Rey's beautiful brown eyes remained open, but they were cold and lifeless. "Rey.. no, no no.." He quickly wrapped his arms around the body of his savoir. His battle worn hands curled around her head, his fingers intertwining with her hair, which was still done up as she always had it. "Rey.." her body was still warm, but in his arms it felt small and weak. The force in her was gone, her life force had left with it. Ben held her. An embrace he longed to share with her but could never imagine it happening this way. "Please..." He pleaded with the stars, the past Jedi. He waited for what felt like eternity but as only mere seconds, but no answer. He felt the warmth from her body slowly dissipate. "Rey..." tears started to well up inside him. Then he remembered something; something Rey had done to him. Something that had caused a shift in him from dark to light. "I've got you.." Ben whispered as he adjusted his grip on Rey so he could reach her. He placed his hand on her stomach, which was now going cold, and focused. He focused on a things good, all things Rey had done good... and he healed her. transferring his life-force into her.

It took all his might, more power then he had ever used, but it was working. Ecstatic, he focused more, feeling Rey warm up and her precious heart beat. He grew a smile as his own body weakened, but he kept going until he heard the faintest of whispers.

"B-Ben..?" Rey's eyes blinked, Ben had saved her. He let out a gasp and held her tighter, feeling the warmth return to the Jedi's body. Rey noticed his smile, and remembered what she had just done. She closed her eyes in relief, feeling blessed that Ben had be spared from the cruel death by the hands of her grandfather. "I'm so-" She took a moment to find the words. All Rey could do was look into Bens eyes, she felt his strength flood into her. Their connection. Everything. Ben looked back into her eyes, light sparkled off them. Rey saw her own reflection in his eyes; feelings she had only witnessed briefly bubbled up inside her.

She leaned in towards him, quickly glancing at his lips. She wanted to kiss him, it was clear. Rey had never felt so many emotions well up inside her before. Ben, just gazed into her eyes until he realized what she wanted. He felt her emotions and his own blend, and in one fluid motions their lips locked.

Rey closed her eyes. A spark light inside her that she never knew, she became filled with this hot gas of new feelings as her eyes closed. In the darkness that surrounded her, she felt Ben's feelings. It amazed her, the man she once regarded as a monster now cared so much about her. _Did he always feel that way?_The question got pushed to the back of Rey's mind as she enjoyed the moment. It couldn't last long enough for her.

Ben closed his eyes as their lips met in a dance of romance. Never before had he ever felt this way about someone or something. Never before had he felt so wrong about his past but so right about his future. Rey tasted good; but that didn't matter, she was alive, and so was the galaxy. Ben could feel her heart beat with so many emotions that he couldn't describe, it was wonderful.

As their lips parted ways, Rey felt the lightening spark between them slowly fade as Ben's hands slipped off of her. The light in his eyes grew dim, and for a breathe moment Rey was confused. Gazing into her eyes, Ben wanted one last look at her before he died. Sensing that he had used all of his life force on her, Rey quickly moved and grabbed him by arms as he started to fall back.

"No! Ben, why did you..." She didn't want to finish, Ben was dying, and she could save him. As he had done for her moments ago. Rey pressed her hands against his chest and pushed half of her sustaining force into him. Rey grew weaker moments into her rescue, this was not going to be easy, but Ben needed to live. "Ben..." Rey could only whisper as she felt his heart beat once again. Rey collapsed onto his chest, exhausted by their fight and her own injuries. They lay together now, alive, but barely.

Ben flickered his eyes open, his blurry vision clearly to reveal the cracked rock formations of Palpatine's throne room. He looked down at the weight on his chest. Gasping, he pushed himself up to get a better look at Rey, fearing the worse yet again. _Is she dead? _No, relieved, Ben saw her chest rising and falling in the most gentle of ways. He smiled, remembering their kiss. _She's always been so beautifully peaceful... _Ben thought as he remembered all the times they met, even the bad times. From their meeting in the woods; to their talks through the force; from their fight on the Death Star ruins. She was always beautiful.

"Rey, wake up. It's time to go.." Ben said in a hushed voice, neither of them were at full strength, however they needed to leave before the others thought Rey was dead. Her chest role and fell, with the way she was laying, her perfect figure was outlined. Ben smiled, lightly tapping her shoulder nearest to him. "Rey.." He whispered again. Her eyes fluttered open and Ben could see a newfound light within them.

"Ben..." Rey began, trying to form the right words as her head and vision cleared to gaze upon the reborn Solo. "Thank you, for everything." Rey felt her body ache with exhaustion, but looking up at him she felt a blaze of energy. After everything she went through; the emotional roller coaster that Ben had her thinking he would turn to the light, or rather she turn to the dark with him. He was finally where she wanted him to be.. with her.

"No, no Rey... don't be sorry." Most people never saw 'Kylo Ren' the way Rey got to. Even before he had switched to the dark, Solo had a connection to her, and she did on to him as well. Rey smiled, for she had longed to hear that voice of the Ben she knew was always inside him. He sounded like his soul was freed from a cage; it was uplifting. "I should've take your hand, and joined the Resistance long before now." Rey shook her head, still locking eyes with him.

"You saved me, and the galaxy, from Palpatine..." She blinked. Just to make sure this wasn't a fever-dream, it was too good to be true, but indeed. It was true. "If you had listened to me.. or I listened to you. We never could have done this, but Ben.." She gazed into his face, knowing he was paying the most attention he ever could. "I feel it too." Ben's eyes started to water, he knew what she was talking about.

"Me to.." He closed his eyes so she couldn't see him cry, but she sensed it anyway. Rey started to tear up as well, but this was no time to cry. She mustered her aching legs and pushed herself up, kicking some of the black dust up from Palpatine's Throne room. The two had no idea how long they had been out for, or if anyone was looking for them. Ben still seated sitting, watching Rey as she stood.

"We need to leave here Ben." Rey said turning to pick up her light saber, she picked up her second one. She smiled, this was a Skywalker saber. The old Kylo would've wanted to destroy this, but he had used this to defeat his own Knights of Ren. "Here, have this." Ben stood up and went to grab what Rey was gonna give him.

"Thank you." His smile was so pure, it almost scared Rey. She handed him the saber and briefly dusted off her clothes, there really wasn't a point as it became so ditty during the fight it was practically ruined. Ben and already started towards the exit and when Rey turned to face him again she remembered something.

"I need to, errh, be clear..." Ben stopped, truing his head to look at the scavenger turned savoir. _She's perfect... _he thought to himself. He had always thought that. "The, people, we are heading back to won't exactly be thrilled to see you." Rey's facial expressions told Ben she was sugarcoating it. "And well, I don't want them hurting you. Only Finn has seen your face, so I could say you died saving me.. or, uh, we just face them together?" Rey was going through scinaerios in her head. "I'm not sure, they could forgive you... I know I can. I know Leia will, but the others.. they might not understand what you did for them." Ben just smiled. He didn't care what they thought, well he did care about his mother and Rey.

"I will be fine. I'll face them, I have to." Ben said with the confidence Rey also knew he had. Rey approached him, signaling to leave. When she passed him, he let her take the lead. They could hear each others footsteps it was so quiet, Ben liked it.

"I just want them to see you the way I see you." She paused without stopping her walk towards the exit. "The way you saw me before anyone else." Her voice had gotten softer, like she was reliving what he had said. She was so tempted to join his side, they understood each other. Now that he was in the light, the possibilities were endless.

"They will come around, well, not all of them." Ben replied, looking as his feet as they neared the exit of the ratchet planet. The light from a nearby star was cutting through the clouds as if a blanket of darkness was being lifted. "Some will always think I have motives, or as you would say, I'm a murderous snake." The last part was more of a joke then fact, at least about Rey, but she took it seriously. Rey stopped walking and turned to face him, resting her hand on the side of his arm.

"Ben, I don't think that anymore... I was wrong about you." She looked into his eyes, trying to convey her message. He knew she meant it, they had mostly made up for it during their bonding force talks. The only reason Ren had fought her was because he needed her, and she fought back. Her touch, however, sent shocks through his body like that night on the island. "So, so very wrong about you.." She looked up and down him before she turned back around her hurried towards the way out.

"I was never wrong about you." Ben uttered under his breathe as he followed her thereafter. He secretly hoped Rey had heard what he said, but even if she hand't he still meant it. Passing by the giant Sith sculptures made the light dim, but her outfit glowed like a lightning bug in the dark. He couldn't stop thinking about how beautiful she was, inside and out, and had always seen how pretty she was even when they first met in the forest. Ben was different then, and he intended to make up for everything he had done if he hadn't already.

* * *

When the two had reached the outside, Rey saw how Ben had gotten here. Parked neatly next to Luke's X-Wing was a TIE fighter. _What a juxtaposition! _She thought, seeing the two enemies parked side by side in the fight for evil filled her with hope. _If Ben can change, so many others can too. _Rey hurried ahead of Ben, who had been mostly silent once they had gotten to the elevator like rock that took them up here.

"Hey Ben!" He looked up right away when he called his name, she giggled internally _he is adorable _"Lets squeeze into my X-wing, I don't want what is left of the First Order to track your stolen TIE." She then hopped up onto the X-Wing, opening the hatch to get it. "Well hurry!" Ben quickly followed suit, but once he got onto the X-Wing he looked around. Rey was already sitting in the pilots seat.

"Where am I going to fit?" He questioned, after all he was a fairly large man. Rey looked up and nodded her head behind her. Its a good thing she wasn't too big.

"Behind me, there should be enough room for you to sit, it might be pinch." She adjusted her seat. "Now you might be able to stick your legs through." He followed her directions and sat behind her, and it was a pinch.

"This is going to be tight" He smirked as the top of the X-Wing came down as Rey readied for take off. Ben put his legs through, it was barely enough space. He was very close to her, so it didn't matter if he got sore.

"Ready?" Rey asked, looking back slightly as the X-Wing lifted off the ground, its engines roaring to life. Ben knew she didn't just mean for take off, but for the responses of the people who were to meet the man behind the mask. He nodded, he was ready.

"Yes." Rey turned her head after his reply and took off, the initial speed of take off pushing her and Ben into their makeshift seats even more. As the climbed they saw the toll of the battle. Many rebel and 'Final Order' ships law destroyed all across the surface of Exegol. Rey felt a pang of guilt _I could've stopped all of this sooner... _looking away she noticed they were clear, and clicked a few buttons. The two entered light speed and exited the planet.

* * *

"Ben, we are here" Rey called back as she exited light speed and the lush planet of the Resistance was before them. She waited for a moment, no answer. "Ben?" Rey now asked for his attention, and waited a moment or two for an answer again. Curious, she looked back, and what she saw was outstanding. _You've got to be kidding me, he is asleep? _Sure enough, Ben Solo had fallen asleep in the tight space of the X-Wing. Rey laughed "Ben!" She growled playfully, but still he slept. "Beeennnnnnnn" Rey called again, this time just for fun. When he still didn't wake, she tried her best to turn around and tap him on his shoulder. He jerked awake

'Huh, what?" His eyes were squinting at the light reflecting off the surface of the planet as they entered its upper atmosphere. He relaxed a bit when he saw Rey.

"We're here." She said, turning back around to control the landing. It had been an eventful couple of days, she needed time to think most of it through. Much like Ben, she needed sleep. Ben didn't reply, but he really didn't need to. As the X-wing pierced through the sky, he could make out the Resistance base. To his amazement, it didn't look happy. It looked like they were holding a funeral.

Rey made her approach, getting lower and lower until she was barely above the trees and finally touched down on a makeshift runway. Ben could see a crowd of people gather around as they waited to see who emerged from Luke's X-Wing. He recognized only three, the pilot, the wookie and FN-2187. Rey's eyes lit up when she saw Finn, Poe, Cheewie and BB-8. She quickly opened the hatch and jumped out, the crowd cheered.

"Guys!" Rey jumped down and ran up to them as they embraced her with a group hug. "You won't believe what happened..." she whispered as they hugged in front of everyone. Behind her, Ben slowly hopped out. The group hushed and Finn opened his eyes, noticing who it was.

"Rey! its Kylo-" Before he could finish, Rey put her finger to his mouth but it was too late, the others heard. As the group disbanded their hug. Poe stepped back and Rey had to hold Finn from charging at Ben.

"Everyone its okay- he is with me." Rey called back as she managed to restrain Finn, he still just stared at Ben as the group fell silent. A few moments of awkward tension passed and Rey had succeeded at calming Finn down. She turned and started walking back to Ben who was still standing at the base of the X-Wing. Ben looked to her, to the crowd then back to Rey. _She will keep me safe..._ He thought.

"I am Ben Solo, or as many of you know.." He trailed off as the group gasped. "Kylo Ren."

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**Thanks for reading this chapter! **

**I apologize if any parts dragged on or repeated, I really wanted to show the intimacy Rey and Ben were holding back all this time. **

**I also apologize for any errors in star wars lore and spelling. I am new to this area but like I said, I'm in love with Rey (Daisy Ridley) and the whole Reylo dynamic. **

**Please, I beg, give me feedback or a follow if you liked this. The more love you show the better quality I will make this story. Expect longer chapters though. **

**Thanks again - London **


	2. The Waterfall

**Thank you all for the incredible response! I almost feel bad for thinking this story wasn't gonna do well. Thank you all who reviewed, followed and favorited! I have listened to your reviews and thank you for the compliments! **

**Just a head up, in case you didn't know (Which I'm guessing none of you did) this will be a slow burn, at least through the first few chapters. I like the tension to build up, makes everything better.**

**I said longer chapters, but, I might just do 2k ish words per chapter but make updates more frequently. Really not sure yet**

**This will include some fighting scenes so expect the rating to go to T. **

**Don't worry, all the fluff in the world will come in time. It'll be like Build-A-Bear by the time I'm done. **

**Expect weekly update around Sunday/Saturday. If I get excited about a chapter (which ends up happening a lot) it might be mid-week. **

**Whatever the case, thanks again. Everyone follow is a blessing. **

**Thanks, London.**

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_**Chapter 2 **_

The rise of many murmuring voices rose into a firestorm. Rey looked at Ben, he stood proudly. _He is proud to be a Solo_ she thought with a smile, catching the attention of Finn. He was evidently pissed, and confused. Pissed and confused, the look on his face was that of shock and awe.

"How could you bring this monster back!" He hissed between gritted teeth, not only did she stand there with him, she was _smiling _at him. Jealousy boiled beneath his skin. He felt betrayed "Rey!" His voice echoed powerfully between the trees. She turned, a little shocked by the anger in his voice. Ben did too and the groups murmurs were silenced. "Why?" He yelled again. Rey, taken aback slightly approached the disgruntled Finn.

"Finn, calm down." She walked up to him, locking eyes with Finn so he would know she meant what she said. "Ben saved me, he save us all." The group gasped again and the murmuring arose from the crowd. Ben, expecting a worse reaction, was honestly pleased.

"Murderous snake!" A long female voice called from the crowd. "Coward!" Another insult rose above the rest of the whispers. Finn's angered slowly died, but he was still mad. The insults that rose from the crowd had Rey feeling bad for Ben.

"Stop it!" Rey called to the crowd, and again the whispering hushed. She pointed towards Ben who stood "He saved us! Without him, the who galaxy would be under Final Order control." The murmuring picked up again, but Rey wasn't finished. Ben felt true compassion for the first time in ages, and she wasn't even being honest. Rey saved them, he just helped her. "I died, after defeating my gran-" She slipped up on her own tongue, the crowd gasp "He revived me." She turned back to Ben, smiling "He found the light." He was smiling too, and Finn noticed. Enraged with jealousy he stormed off. _How can she defend him like that? What? She was dead? He could be fooling us! _Rey watched as he left, a pang of empathy stabbed through her chest but quickly vanished. Finn shouldn't be mad for too long.

"How can we trust him?" A man called from the group, the others voiced their agreement. Rey opened her mouth to reply, but Ben stepped forward and signaled for her to let him take this one. Rey obeyed and closed her jaw.

"You have too. The war isn't over, and you will need all the help you can get. I know what I have done..." He looked around at the group. He sensed fear radiate from the crowd. Searching for the right words he found them "I will pay for what I did, but first let me get my revenge on the First Order. Let me earn my redemption by fighting along side you." The crowd still looked hesitant, but some of them relaxed a bit. His mini speech had smoothed the waters for now.

"Where is Leia?" Rey asked as she went up next to Ben, he nodded to her question, he was eager to see his mother again. The crowd went silent for the third time, but something was different about this silence. That's when Rey saw her, the young lady who worked with Leia. Tears ran down her cheeks and Rey felt her stomach drop.

"Sh-she didn't make it.." The girl could barely push the words out. Rey stood still for a moment. She was crushed, and so was Ben. He looked around, the group noticing his emotions, they almost took pity for him. They did however had pity for Rey. Who's eyes swelled with tears. Poe, having stayed to watch Kylo after Finn ad rushed off, went up to Rey to hug her. With open arms she embraced him, Ben just stood still.

"We thought you died too... we are so, so sorry." Rey started to cry, technically she had died. But the embrace of a person, like Poe, pushed her over the edge and she began to ball. The group slowly dispersed as to not make the moment anymore awkward, leaving just Poe, Cheewie, Ben and Rey. While Ben didn't cry, he felt the strangest sadness. His mother had died before she saw her only son turn to the light, it almost felt empty. He stood their in his own thoughts for a while and Poe and now Cheewie went up to comfort Rey. She was a loss for words.

"Can- can I see her" Rey whispered softly, why was it that she saw as a parental figure have to die? Was she bad luck? _A__m I bad luck? _Tears streamed down her cheeks and onto the shoulder of Poe. Who pulled away to look at her, delivering what he thought was bad news. Ben still stood motionless

"Her body, Maaz said, disappeared shortly after she died." Rey's eyes got wide, still shinny with tears and Ben turned quickly to face him. Poe was confused, but didn't question it.

"Force ghost.." Rey murmured, confusing Poe even more. He shrugged and walked away, turning back to look at her. _She is still with me, I can feel it. _Rey thought with a beam of reassurance.

"Well if you need anything, you know where to find me." He walked away towards the base, the birds chirping in a delightful song. Rey scurried back to Ben who still stood in the same spot. She wrapped her arms around him, if anything Rey felt worse for Ben then for herself.

"I'm sorry Ben, I thought I felt something happen to her, but I completely forgot..." She felt the pain of sadness burn in her chest remembering the fight on the Death Star wreckage. He looked down at her with soft eyes, feeling the warmth of another persons sympathy was a foreign feeling for him.

"I know how this happened." He broke the hug and looked into Rey's eyes. They were red and puffy, evidence of her loss. "She spoke to me, on the Death Star; she must've given her life to me.. for me to change." He shook his head, this overwhelming sense of importance flooded him. Rey nodded and walked away slowly, her icy resolve showing once again. Most of her pain came at night, when she struggled to sleep. Her dreams over the past year were plagued with the visions of her becoming the Empress, but that was out of the picture now.

"It's okay... follow me." She said without looking back, Ben followed her right away. This wasn't his home, and he wanted to do everything he could to get on the good side of his new allegiance. "I have a small hut you can stay in for now, if you're comfortable with that." She added, turning back this time with a look only Rey could pull of. Ben had to say yes, or else he would have to deal with the fury of Rey.

"Yes, yes that's fine with me." He replied catching up to her as she took him up the side of the lush hill. Rey noticed some glances of her fellow Resistance fighters were that of disgust, while others were that of joy. She knew bringing Ben back would change the view of her in some of the soldiers, but who cares, right?

"Good, now you will need to keep a low profile around here." _So will I..._ Rey thought as she spoke "But stay with me, while the others might not show it, I want you around." She finished as they reached the top. Ben smiled wide, _She wants me around! _He thought as he gazed upon the small wooden hut. It was quaint, but very Rey. She opened the door and faced him. Her eyes were less red, but the same sparkle in her eyes when they kissed was back, and Ben noticed.

"Thank you" He said before lightly ducking to enter the room. Light shinned into the singular room, casting warm shadows in patterns of the vines which hung over the window. In the corner to the right was a lone hammock, next to shelf full of books and random parts an pieces of things from Jakku. An orange doll of what looked to be a Rebel pilot sat on the top of the shelf. In the center was a pit with charred wood, encircled by a ring of larger pieces of wood mostly used for sitting. In the far back was a stove and a sink with what appeared to be running water, god knows how Rey manufactured that. To the left of that was a large chest with extra garments near it. There was a small empty space before there was a small table and one chair, a lamp and a pen. The last piece of furniture in the hut was a small couch.

"Welcome to my home.." Rey said softly as she closed the wooden door behind her. Placing her hands on her hips she gazed at her own home. "I miss my home in Jakku a lot sometimes." She brushed past him, lightly touching his arm when she did so. Sending ripples of feelings through Ben's body. "Finn accompanied me to get some of my stuff back from Jakku. I would never want to go back forever, but I do want to visit again." She moved to the hammock and sat down. "I'm so tired Ben..." Rey let out a sigh, feeling her aching muscles and bones cry for sleep. "But we need to get you some clothes and a shower." She chuckled at the last bit. Ben gasped in a fake way, he hadn't joked around with anyone since he was a boy. It felt, nice.

"Fine." He paused breifly, lost in his thoughts. "I need some clothes, please, if you can" He looked around and sat on the couch. It was shockingly comfortable. Rey giggled, laughing at herself for forgetting the he needs needs clothes.

"I have a small water fall I found on the other side of the hill I use for showering." She stood up, heading towards the exit. "No one ever goes back there, I will take you there and you can clean up while I find you some clothes." She tilted her head, eyes shining bright "You can borrow my soap until Julia makes more." With that, Rey opened the door and exited into the mid afternoon sun. Ben was close behind her as they made the trek down and around the base of the hill. However, after cooling down, Finn was heading to Rey's hut to apologize. But when he neared the pathway up to her hut, all he saw was a smiling and giddy Rey leading the man he still saw as Kylo Ren behind the rebel hangar. Assuming the worst, fiery jealous burned in his chest and below his skin. He clenched his fist and stormed off.

* * *

Once behind the hill; Rey pushed back a couple of huge leaves and sure enough, there was a small, almost personal waterfall with crystal clear water. The grey, smooth and stony rocks gave way to a small shallow pool which lead into a small stream. It was well hidden but light did penetrate the trees and foliage. Ben smiled at the sight. The world seemed so much more colorful outside the First Order. Rey walked up the socks and waited for Ben to catch up. She opened a small box that rested on a small indention in the rock wall.

"The soap is in here, sorry if you smell like a girl!" She giggled again, her cute teethy smile beaming through the late afternoon air. "I will leave you be for bit, I'll find you some clothes." Ben smiled and walked over to the box as Rey walked away towards the exit. He waited until her body had disappeared out of sight before he undid her belt and slipped of his clothes. He hastily went over to the box and opened it. Inside he saw multiple kinds of soap, a razor and some cream. He also noticed a bottle of pills. _What are these Rey..? _He thought for a moment but closed the box after grabbing a white half used bar of soap. Ben jumped in and felt the water was warm, happily, he began to wash.

Meanwhile, Rey had returned to the main hub of the Resistance. Normal chattered had resumed, but she heard talks of a planned celebration later for the victory. Many thoughts danced throughout Rey's head as she entered the hanger, strange new feelings consumed her as well. _Its okay Rey, a goodnights' sleep and you'll clear up all these mumble-jumble thoughts. _She knew they weren't mumble-jumble, but they were so strong it almost scared her. Smiling, she approached an acquaintance of hers.

"Hey Paul, do you have some extra clothes I can borrow?" The question caught the man named Paul off guard. He lifted his head up from under his table and gasp. He was about the same height as Ben, but a little skinnier. Rey was a very hard woman to say no too.

"Uh-errr yea. Here, follow me." He stood up. The Resistance had a locker full of extra clothes for any refugees or deserters who needed a place to stay. Rey happily followed him to the back room. Once they arrived he opened a door and allowed Rey to enter. "Are these for..?" He questioned. Rey held her tongue for a moment, but quickly thought of an excuse.

"Oh, uhh no. I am looking for some clothes to be cozy in." She answered with a petite smile and tilt of the head. The fib worked, and he went over to the of male larges. He was aware of the size cozy clothes needed to be. He stepped back and let Rey dig through the pile of clothes. On bended knee Rey looked through all of them, picking out the ones she thought Ben would like. _I bet he would look great in blue.. _she thought with a smile.

"Well, I will let you do this in peace Rey. Don't forget to close the door on your way out." Paul said as he left the room. Rey gave an 'mhm' as an acknowledgement to his statement, but kept her focus on getting enough sets of matching clothe for Ben. A few moments passed and Rey got up, in her arms she carried a large pile of everything Ben would need. Walking away from the vault, she closed the door behind her with the force as to keep her hands free.

Once she cleared the hanger, she walked neatly back behind the hill again. But before she rounded the turn, she noticed Finn watching her from across the runway. Rey gave a smile and headed around the bend. Finn waved back nervously. _Everything I wanted to do with Rey that monster accomplished in mere minutes. _Of course, that wasn't true. But he didn't know that.

Rey heard the splashing of water as she neared the entrance to her secret waterfall. Smiling at the thought of Ben having fun for the first time in age she forgot to let him know she was coming back in with the clothes. Pushing back the large green leaves, Rey entered the secret space..

"Here you go- Be-Ben..." Rey trailed off as her eyes grew wide. Once again, the very muscular top half of Ben was showing. His fair skin glistened in the light, reflecting off the water on his body. Startled she dropped the clothes onto the ground and let out a squeak. "I'm sor-sorry I forgot to knock..." Rey began, but her eyes were locked on Ben's pecs. Rey began to feel a warm almost tingly sensation grow within her lower stomach area _this is new.._. She didn't notice how she was staring, and she bite her lip without even knowing. Ben just looked up at her, he felt strangely comforted by her reaction.

"Its okay, Rey." He said with a calm voice as he lowered himself into the water to be more covered. "Thanks for the clothes." She nodded and quickly came to her senses and looked away, putting her hand up over her eyes to shield herself. Ben smiled, she was so adorable. Her other hand rested at her side, but his was clenched into a ball.

"Get dressed." Rey said, her voice a notable higher octave. Ben nodded and stepped out of the water. Rey heard the sound of the water as he moved and heard the drops of water hit the stone as he got out. "I won't look." Rey added as she felt him reach for the clothes. The tingly arm feeling in her lower abdomen had spread to all of her lower regions now, and she had to squeeze her thumb to block it out. _What's wrong with you Rey? _She thought to herself while Ben go dressed.

"You can look now." He said with a smooth tone in his voice. Rey quickly turned around and felt her cheeks grow hot. Ben looked _great _in blue, just like she had hoped. _Get a grip of yourself Rey! _She internally hissed at herself. Ben placed the soap back into the box and noticed the pills again, curious he decided to ask about them. "Rey, what are these pills about?" He turned to face her, his hair sparkled with water droplets. Rey clenched up for a moment; only her, Leia and Doc. Keller knew about her sleeping troubles.

"I need..." She looked down and back up. Ben's once cold eyes were warm and inviting, almost comforting. "I need those to help me sleep sometimes." Rey looked away again, this time into the water. "It gets really bad sometimes." Ben felt a pang of sympathy towards the scavenger. He did know what that was like, and he stepped towards.

"Its okay, I feel it too." Ben said, looking down at her. He really didn't, but he wanted to comfort her. Rey looked up into his eyes, and she felt the same tug she felt when they shared a kiss on the floor of Palpatines thrown room. She placed a hand on his chest, and looked at his lips. The same tug she had felt when they were in the elevator, before they teamed up to kill Snoke. The same tug she had felt during their force talks on Luke's island.

"Ben..." Rey whispered, using her hand to grab into is shoulder and pull herself closer to him. He felt her embrace light the hot feelings in his chest he had felt on Exegol. He looked into her eyes, they were so sweet. He felt his new pants tighten at the waist, and he grabbed Rey's hand and took it off him.

"Rey, you need to rest." He said, looking down at the beautiful girl before him. Somehow, he had managed to resist the temptation he felt for her. It needed to be the right time. But in doing so, he saw Rey's eyes grow sad and she frowned. He was right, but her body cried out for more.

"You're right." Rey shook her head and went for the box with the pills in it. Grabbing one, she popped it into her mouth and swallowed. Ben had already started to walk away towards the hut, and the tingly in Rey's pants died away. She scoffed at herself in anger. W_hat the hell were you thinking? Idiot. _Rey shook her head and followed him up and around the hanger to her hut. They didn't speak a word, and by the time Rey got there the pill had kicked in and she could barely keep her eyes open. She flopped down into her hammock and drifted into sleep. Ben watched from the couch as he did so, smiling as he thought of her dreaming happy dreams. _She is something special... I can never loose my only ray of light. Never. _Ben thought as he too drifted into the realm of sleep.

* * *

**Thanks again for the amazing response! I love every review and follow just as much as I love Reylo. **

**I put some pop culture references and some foreshadowing in this chapter, as well as some call backs to the three movies in the trilogy. **

**If you can spot some of them, drop them into the reviews and I'll shout you out in the coming chapter! **

**Its currently 1:30 a.m. where I am, so I'll keep it short. **

**I love all of ya, and thanks again!**

**\- London**


	3. The Dance

**Hey! Thanks for the response to chapters 1 & 2. I am really excited about writing this one, but I get off break soon which means updates will become more of a weekly thing. **

**I said before, this is a slow burn. The good stuff is yet to come haha, just wait.**

**I was thinking of doing 20 chapters, but I don't want to confine myself to limitations, so I'll just keep writing until I feel a good place for this story to end. Happy ending or tragic ending? I don't even know yet. I only see about 3 chapters into the future lol. **

**If you have any suggestions on what I should do in certain chapters, let me know by PM of Review. I won't get mad if you don't like it, I want to make this the best story possible. **

**More fluff is coming, so prepare yourself. **

**Thanks again, for all the follows and favs. Means a lot, really.**

**-London**

* * *

Rey was still asleep. Passed out in an almost awkward position in her hammock bed, the sun was already bright in the sky when Ben awoke with a sigh. He didn't see the face of his father in his dreams, he saw the face of Rey. He looked around at her hut, this place was so cozy. Ben sat up, checking the time he saw it was almost midday, he chuckled inwardly. They really needed their sleep, he stretched and yawned, scratching his neck he made his way to a cupboard next to her stove. He searched it, his stomach growled with hunger and he found some eggs. He picked up four and began to look for a pan, she had to have one. He opened another cupboard near her stove. _Aha _He though as he saw a nice pan and some wooden plates. Ben picked them up and placed them on the stove, cracking open two eggs he watched them cook. He glanced over at Rey, who was still asleep. _She's going to be so happy to wake up to eggs. _Ben smiled just thinking of her, his soul was finally free. The eggs began to crackle and the hut smelled of good fresh food. Ben flipped the eggs over, cooking them fully. He lightly walked over to where Rey slept, on arm dangling off the hammock the other over her precious eyes. Her hips were twisted so one leg crossed over the other, but Rey was flexible.

"Hey, Rey" He whispered, lightly tapping her arm. She didn't budge "Rey, wake up. I made you breakfast." Ben spoke as he waited for her eyes to flutter open. Sure enough, they did. She looked dreamy but was clearly in a better way then from yesterday. Rey could already smell the eggs once she became aware of her surroundings. She smiled wide, the exact thing Ben wanted to see. Rey yawned as he stepped back to finish up the food.

"Eggs?" Rey asked, she already knew the answer but dialogue was necessary. She hadn't had a dream that scared her, and she desperately wanted to talk about it. Ben nodded and flopped the eggs onto a plate and handed it to Rey who smiled again. "Thank you, Mr. Solo" She then forced picked up a fork and zoomed it towards her. Rey took a bite "Mmmmm" she loved it, not only was the food good but the fact he had made it for her.

"You're welcome." Ben flashed his adorable smile, cracking two more eggs for himself. Rey watched him cook, taking bite after bite and enjoying every bit of it. She had wanted Ben to be Ben so badly, that she almost never thought of what him being 'Ben' would look like. Seeing him now, it was fantastic.

"Did they teach you this in the First Order?" Rey questioned, finishing up her plate and standing up from her hammock. She winced, he legs and back were so sore. Reminders of what she had done just a day ago. _I wonder how Ben feels.. _She though, heading over to her clothing bin. She opened it and looked through the neatly folded sets of clothes. _Hmmm what should I wear. _She asked herself as she passed by a brilliant red outfit, _Yes! This is the one, I forgot they made this for me. _Rey pulled it out. _Red and white, the perfect mix. _She stood up, grabbing an extra pair of white pants.

"No." Ben finally answered as he was too focused on the eggs to notice Rey's question initially. He turned to face her, noticing her color choice. "Nice red, should suit you well." He smirked and started to his breakfast. Rey blushed slightly at his compliment, she had gotten words like that before on Jakku, but they were just old junk lords who wanted Rey as a working lady.

"Why thank you, Ben." She walked towards the door. "I am going to shower and change, if you feel safe enough, go ahead and explore the base." Rey said as she exited. The bright, late morning sun hurt her eyes as they struck her pupils. Squinting at first she made her way down the hill and towards the main base areas. The workers and soldiers had set up up a pavilion on the runway, with lights and candles hanging from ship to ship. They were preparing for a celebration, and Rey was ready for a day without war for once. _Maybe they will finally let me unwind... _She sighed and continued to walk, turning past a tree which lead to the path towards the waterfall. Lost in her thoughts about tonight, she didn't see Finn and almost ran into him. Startled, he turned around.

"Rey?" His tone was almost impatient. "What are you doing? Did you not see me?" He glared at her, which had almost never happened before. She was taken aback, her jaw dropped, and her tongue stumbled on her own words. Finn, noticing her tongue tied state, pressured her more. "Why are you wearing red? You never wear red." Finn stared into her eyes, as the Jedi searched her brain for the right response.

"Finn, I-I'm sorry for running into you." Her eyes darted across his face, scanning for emotions. "I was on my way to change- I was busy thinking... errr" She gritted her teeth for a moment, Finn's eyes drilled into her forehead like the beam of a blaster. This was incredibly uncomfortable. "Leia, and I had gotten this made for me." Rey gestured towards the clothes she was holding. "I never got the chance to wear it." Rey forced a smile as if to apologize again, but Finn had none of it.

"You know what it looks like to me?" He questioned, his whisper became louder and more powerful. Rey shook her head in reply. "No? It looks like those Storm troopers we fought on Exegol." He pushed back on the red felt, making Rey step backwards for a moment to regain balance.

"Finn!" Rey gasped. She didn't understand the point she was making, but she didn't like where this was heading. Finn didn't hesitate to continue.

"How can we trust that you didn't get these robes there? You did bring Ren back, maybe you brought your new status too." His face has constricted, Rey knew he was furious. His anger was so strong, in fact, she could feel it in the force. However, those comments hurt her.

"You can trust me!" Her eyes were pleading, but her tone was strong and loud. _Why is he saying all of this?! _She cried internally, not wanting to loose a friend.

"Is that an order? Empress?" Finn hissed the last word out. Rey froze, _what did he just call me? _Anger welled inside her too now, _I died! How is that not enough? How dare he! _Her eyes grew icy and she stood straight up to face him, looking up into his eyes.

"What did you just call me?" Rey's voice was low and threatening, shocking Finn in return for the shock he had given her. He stepped back, giving space between him and his friend.

"Empress" Finn didn't care what Rey did next. For all he knew, he was right. Rey had brought an enemy of the very meaning of the Resistance back, and not only that, slept with him. He hoped it wasn't true, which is wasn't, but he didn't know any better. He was in a lot of pain. Rey growled, and quickly she lifted her arm making a waving motion over Finn's face.

"You will leave me be and NEVER call me that again." Rey watched as Finn repeated what she said, her useful force trick came in handy. She did not want to hurt him, but what he had said made her furious to the core. Finn walked away from her and she took a moment, _How did he know I was a Palpatine? Wait- did he tell anyone else? No- he wouldn't. _She made her way through the bushes and into the waterfall area. she placed her clothes down. The air was fresh and the birds sang a delightful song, she was ready to relax again.

Rey threw off her top and unbuckled her waist belt, untied her boots and slid off her pants, tossing the dirty clothes into a corner. She bent over and took her socks off. Now naked, she tip toed over to her soap box and took a fresh bar out. Smelling it before officially using it _Ahhhh yes, such a good scent! _Rey smiled and hopped into the water, the cool liquid rushing over her skin giving her goosebumps at first. She let out a squeak, but the water opened her skin up and she lay back. "Mmmmmm" She closed her eyes, floating in the water, feeling her body tension release by the second. A few moments later, Rey undid her hair and let it come out. _Empress? Ha, I can't let that get to me. I defeated him. I am not part of him. _Rey rationalized what Finn had said, smiling at her own thoughts. _He was just upset, that's all. You are not a bad person, you are only a Palpatine by blood. _Somehow she had managed to calm herself down, drifting off into mediation in the water. Rey hadn't known how much time had passed, but she peacefully floated in the water.

"Empress." A strange, harsh voice called out to Rey. She shot her head up out of the, and what she saw horrified her. Standing by the edge of the water was her, Empress Palpatine, dressed in all black wielding the dual red light sabers. Rey couldn't speak and her body tensed up, feeling a surge of addrenaline pump through her bones she shot her arm up and force pushed the other Rey away. It disappeared, leaving Rey lost in the sounds of the waterfall crashing into the pool where she bathe. Shaking, Rey stood up and glanced around nervously before breaking down into tears. "Why..." She cried out softly, salty tears rushing down her cheeks. "I thought you were gone..." Rey stood up, forcing herself to stop crying. _It was just your imagination, Rey. Calm down. _After a few moments of silence again, she began to get dressed.

* * *

Ben hadn't explored the base, unlike Kylo Ren, he felt shy and awkward about being here. It seemed nice and all, but he wasn't ready to face the people. He needed Rey to be with him when he did, she would help him stay safe and get on the good side of the Resistance. So, for the time that Rey was gone, Ben just wandered around the hill and inside Rey's hut. During his small exploration, he learned a lot more about the young Jedi then he previously did. She seemed very keen on writing, and making things. Almost every part of the house was hand made by someone if not Rey. Ben had also found a journal, but left that untouched as he felt it would be wrong to read it. He also had noticed some parts of the hut were a mess, so he took the time to clean it. Ben smiled at his good deed, it felt so much better to do things in good faith. Renewed, he sat down on the couch to read a Jedi legends book Rey had found on Jakku. A few moments passed before Ben heard the approach of footsteps and the exquisite harmonic pitch that was the voice of Rey.

"Hey, Ben." She entered wearing the dashing red outfit she had picked. It's outer layer was a red poncho like coat with the middle unbuttoned, the collar was popped slightly and shoulders were broad. The shirt inside the poncho was white with a red belt. It fit snugly around her waist, showing her very nice figure. The sides of the poncho went half way down her thighs, which were covered by white quarter pants. Ben smiled at the sight of her.

"You look dashing, whats the occasion?" Ben asked kinda awkwardly, it had been awhile since he had conversations like this with people. Rey had really been the first he talked to about things that didn't involve him or the First Order, and it was fantastic. Rey smiled at the compliment.

"We are having a party tonight to celebrate our victory on Exegol later today, I wanted to look my best, so thank you." Ben flashed a smile back, but sensed Rey wasn't in the best way. While Ben debated on whether or not he should ask her what was wrong, Rey had went over to a a small box on the shelf near her bed. Curious, Ben watched her do so.

"What is in there?" He asked curiously, watching the Jedi open it. Rey didn't respond but instead showed him the contents of the small box, Kyber crystals. He gasped, _how did she get these? _She took on out and looked at it, the sun's rays glinting off and casting sparkles around the room. She smiled

"Luke gave them to me, when I was on his island." She gazed in awe at the beautiful crystal, "He told me to build my own saber, when I was ready." She looked at Ben, who was also gazing on the small but powerful rock. "I need your help to build one later, if you'd like." Rey smiled at him as she put the rock back in the box. He gasped again

"I- I'm flattered, but- If I help you it will turn out red! I'm corrupt." He looked down after he finished. After everything he did to the galaxy, he didn't deserve redemption. All he wanted was to do his best to fix what he had broke, and live a normal life with Rey when it was all over. He smiled at the thought of him and Rey, together somewhere living free of this bloody war.

"Who cares, Ben." Rey rolled her eyes, walking up to him, she wrapped her arms around his muscular trunk and looked up at his eyes. "This is _our _saber. If it turns out red, it turns out red." Ben looked down into her eyes. "What matters is how we use it, our intentions and who we save. The color means nothing, you used a red saber, and look at you now." He felt the same tug that he felt for her after his shower, but this time, he felt his heart swell with pride as well. "I don't need your help to make this, Ben. I _want _your help." She closed her eyes and rested her head against his chest. Feeling his heat beat hard and fast, the light radiating off him. He was truly Ben, even if he wasn't before. Rey felt his hand rest on her head, pulling her closer to him, she smiled. "Now are going to make this thing or what?" She asked, biting her lip subconsciously while look up at him. He noticed this and it made his insides melt, she was adorable.

"Yes, yes I am" He smiled, but Rey didn't let go of his waist. She wanted to kiss him, no, she _needed _to kiss him. Rey closed her eyes and pulled herself up to her tip toes to reach his lips. Ben quickly realized what she wanted, but he was shocked that she wanted to again. He knew he did, but _Rey wants it too? _HEe asked him as he pulled her closer and closed his eyes, waiting for the warm embrace of her lips against his.

Their lips met in a crack of burning tension, exploding their bodies into a frenzy of feelings once again. Ben felt Rey's soft lips caress his, sending his mind into a cluster of emotions. Rey on the other hand, felt her body grow hot with the feelings of Ben's hands slowly wrap around her waist, lightly caressing her sides sent shivers through her body. Nothing had ever felt this good to her, and nothing had ever felt this right to Ben. Rey broke the kiss, let out a peaceful sigh as she did. Blinking twice she looked into his eyes

"I wanted to get that out, now. Help me find something to build this out of." Ben smiled and the two became to dig through the house. The strange stillness of calm settled over the hut as the dyad began to work on the saber.

* * *

The party was about to start. Resistance members gathered on the runway to celebrate. Finn, however hadn't been seen since earlier this morning and Poe was out looking for him. He needed some expert help, so he approached Rey's hut to invite her to the celebration and to ask about Finn. Poe quickly walked up the hill, on approach he heard Rey's laughter and say the light from inside the hut. At first he thought that Finn was with her, so he knocked on the door.

'Rey, can you open up! You're going to miss the party." Poe called, hoping that incentive would make Rey come out. Usually, Rey would spend hours upon hours in her hut, most people thought it was because of her training. He heard the laughter stop and footsteps come towards the door. Sure enough the door nob twisted, and Rey opened it for Poe.

"Hey, Poe." Rey smiled, greeting her friend. Poe however looked over her should to find that it wasn't Finn she was with but Ben. He shrugged, looking back at Rey, who stood politely waiting.

"Have you seen Finn?" He asked kinda hastily, Rey scrunched her eyebrows up. Yes she had seen Finn, but it was hours ago, and she had put him in the trance using the force. For all she knew e could be lost in the forest somewhere.

"Uhhh, not since this morning. Why?" She answered back. Ben now turned around in his chair to see who she was talking too, he figured it was the pilot but he didn't know for sure. And he wanted to apologize for the things he had done.

"Oh, well I'm sorry for asking. The party starts soon," He took a step back and lightly put a hand on her shoulder, "I'll see ya there then." But before he had turned to go, Ben stood up and shouted, knocking his chair over.

"Wait! Pilot- I mean, Poe. I have to tell you something!" Ben hurried over to stand next to Rey, who turned to him in confusion while Poe stopped in his tracks. Rey grabbed Ben's arm and gave him a look of 'be careful', and Ben nodded.

"What." Poe said bitterly, clearly not having any of it, but he did turn to look at Ben when he spoke to him though. A tiny sign of respect. Ben took a breathe and formulated his speech inside his head. Poe waited, raising his eyebrows to show his impatience. Ben began to speak

"I am sorry for everything I did to you, and your fellow soldiers." He paused, looking for a reaction in Poe, but Dameron didn't flinch. "I wasn't me, I wasn't Ben. I was deceieved, used and manipulated by the dark side and Palpatine." Rey flinched at the name, but no one noticed. "I know those aren't excuses for my actions, but, let me make it up to you. General- I will fight along side your troops until the last First Order troop is dead, under your command." Poe, relaxed slightly. Ben was giving himself up to fight as a Resistance solider, a good gesture, but Poe needed to show him that he wasn't fully forgiven.

"Well, Rey knows the force better then I do, and I trust her to believe you when you say that. I will let you fight alongside my men, but I will be watching; and if you ever, and I mean EVER, show any chance of being an inside agent, I will lock you away forever." He turned to go, but wanted to add one last thing. "Is that clear, Private Solo?" Ben nodded, respecting Poe response and enjoying the fact he didn't deny him the ability to fight. Rey smiled slightly, watching as Poe walked away. As soon a the Ace was out of sight, she turned to Ben.

"That could've gone a lot wore." She said, closing the door behind her and returning to the desk where a half assembled lightsaber lay. Ben followed her and let out a chuckle, sitting down at his seat next to hers.

"I thought it went pretty well; I mean, he didn't shoot me." Ben said as he examined the black and grey saber. Rey chuckled, that was true. She looked at her staff, they had taken some pieces from it to make the saber.

"I think we should head to the celebration, you and I." Rey said, her voice echoing off the window as the sun sat below the trees. Ben looked up from their work, tools in hand. He raised an eyebrow

"You, want to party?" He hand't guessed her to be the most social type. Not that she wouldn't have friends, or be eager to make them. Parties just didn't seem like something Rey would do. She nodded, but turned to face him.

"Yes, but I mainly want _you _to celebrate. I think you could use it... plus! You get to drink, I'm sure you couldn't do that in the First Order." Rey walked around her hut as Ben listened, following her moves with his direct attention. She put her hands behind her back, stunting around like an aristocratic. Ben smiled, seeing her like this. "Leia never let me; but Poe did if we were out on a mission. Maybe he isn't the best influence, I don't know." She stopped pacing, standing in the corner near her bed. "That being said, would you like to join me?" She held her hand out like he had when 'Kylo Ren' offered her his hand. He laughed at the remark stood up, the ability to mock his former self was a great sign to Rey. He truly was getting over the past.

"When you offer me your hand, I have to take it." He said, getting up as Rey laughed. Ben had gotten a jacket out of the pile of clothes Rey had gotten him the other day. He quickly put that on, Rey was already at the door so Ben hurried, he didn't want to make her wait. She smirked at him fumbling to put his jacket on.

"You okay there, Ben?" Rey flashed her teethy smile at the big clumsy Ben in front of her. He gave her a playful look and triumphantly got it on. Quickly he walked over to her, flexing his new jacket to her.

"Well maybe if it wasn't so tight, I could get it on faster." He snickered, Rey pretended to be hurt by what he said, opening the door for him the two walked out in their best moods since their first kiss.

"How dare you?!" Rey playfully pushed him out the door with one hand and closing it behind him with the other. He shook his head in laughter when he heard the door close behind them. Carefully, he walked down the mossy terrain that was the hill Rey's hut was located on. Already they could see the light from the party, and hear the sounds of it too.

* * *

An few hours had passed since Rey and Ben entered the party, with drinks in hand some people actually went up to talk to Ben about things. It made Rey happy to see him talk to people and get along, its the life he always deserved. She too had been approached by people, and engaged in conversation with other Resistance members. It was a fun night, music and dancing. Rey didn't dance, neither did Ben, but it was still fun watching tipsy folks dance their heart away. Rey sighed, drink in hand. Ben was talking to a fellow fighter who had defected from the First Order, so she stood alone. Still no sign of Finn, an Poe was off dancing with Zorii somewhere. _All the bloodshed, and its finally nearing the end. Was it worth all the pain? Of course... I need another drink. _Rey joked to herself, what she really needed was a dance partner. She had never danced before, especially not on Jakku.

"Hey Ben, I am going to get another drink." Rey said as she walked off towards the bar, he nodded and sent his new friend on his way. Ben took a seat and waited for Rey to return. _Maybe I should ask her to dance? _Ben thought whilst waiting _nahhhh, she wouldn't like it. I've never even danced before! _Ben argued with himself for the time Rey was gone, and when she got back he had made up his mind.

"You're back!" Ben said happily when he noticed Rey emerge from the crowd. Rey smiled at him, taking a large sip of her new drink, this caught Ben's eye. "Slow down Rey, its still early!" He half joked, but at the same time he serious. He didn't want Rey to get all drunk, it wouldn't suit her. Rey rolled her eyes and took another sip.

"I'll be fine, it only my third." While she wasn't lying, her normally snappy attention to detail had begun to soften around the edges. The drinks were kicking in, just not as fast as she'd hoped. Ben nodded, agreeing with her for now.

"Well... okay. Do you want to dance with me?" He asked nervously, playing with his hands waiting for a reply. Rey froze, that was exactly what she had wanted, besides another drink. She quickly nodded and smiled, feeling all bubbly at the thought of finally dancing.

"Yes!" Rey looked around, worried Finn or Poe might see, she grabbed Ben's hand and ran out of the crowd. Ben followed against his will, being tugged by a buzzed and excited Rey was hard to deal with. She pulled his arm as they weaved in and out of groups of people, passing by the empty anger and up the hill. Rey slipped a bit going up, but caught herself before she col fall. Ben laughed at the sight, but kept pace with the giddy Rey. They eventually reached the top of the hill where her hut was, and Rey spun around to face Ben.

"Someone's excited.." Ben quipped, Taking Rey's other hand in his. He was beyond thrilled too, but he just couldn't show it. Rey could sense his excitement, smiling at the situation she was in. More of her drinks starting to kick in.

"Yes, yes I am, Ben Solo." She walked closer to him, the lights from the party below cast shadows on their faces. Rey looked all over his face, the scars she had put there, and some others she didn't know about. His eye, the way they twinkled in the light; and his smile. The best smile in the galaxy, so rare but so pure. Ben looked into her eyes, nothing could be said about Rey that hadn't been said before. Her eyes, mouth, cheeks, skin, lips, eyebrows everything was perfect. Rey wrapped her arms around Ben's neck, starting the dance. Ben's heart raced, and so did Rey's.

"Uh- where do I put my hands?" He asked, lightly grabbing her upper back. His large hands took up a lot of space on her petite frame. Rey giggled, taking her hands off his neck for a second to push his hands down to her waist and hips. Ben looked on, feeling the Jedi's tight body as she guided his hands

"Here, silly." She laughed once they were in place, putting her arms around his neck once again. Ben just stood there, in amazement of how beautiful she was. Even in the dim light, she glowed with beauty. For a brief period, they just stood there, in each others embrace. Rey's eyes darted up and down Ben's body, he was so good looking. _Why hadn't i noticed this before? Wait- I did... I just denied it.. _She thought to herself, realizing they weren't dancing she laughed. "Come on, lets dance!" She began to sway back and fourth, and Ben kinda staggered awkwardly trying to keep up. She noticed him struggle, and looked into his eyes. "Slow down.. and just sway your body with mine." Her voice was sweet and cool, giving Ben chills at the tone. Nodding, he followed her directions, and slowly the two swayed in sync.

"I- I got it.." Ben whispered, the two slow danced to the tune of nothing but their own feelings. The sounds from the part rose and crashed into their ears, muffled by the trees. Rey closed her eyes, this was the kind of moment she had always wanted to have. Even as a teenager on Jakku, but she never imagined it would feel this right. Ben smiled, watching Rey have the moment he knew she wanted, and they felt their souls light up with electricity. Connecting with one another the force leaped out and connected the two as they danced. Rey's heart nearly jumped out of her chest as she felt Ben's hands lightly grip her hips, moving in silence, she swore Ben could hear it thump. Lost in his own thoughts about the young Jedi, he barely noticed how fast his own heart was thumping.

They danced for what seemed like only mere seconds, but was actually closer to ten minutes. Locked into each others feelings, locked into each others embrace, time seemingly sped up. Rey opened her eyes to find Ben just staring at her, she felt his feelings. And what she felt made her burst into a frenzy of joy. Her eyes teared up, but from joy this time.

"Ben-" But before Rey could finish what she said, a large siren sounded from below on the runway. The crowd below them gasped and yelled, Ben whipped around to see what was happening. Rey's eyes got wide and she took her hands off of him and ran back into her hut. What Ben didn't know, was that the siren was a warning; A warning that a planet was under attack.

Under attack by the First Order.

* * *

**Well, that was a long one! **

**I was going to cut it in half around midnight last night, but I decided that this chapter needed the dance scene or it would feel to choppy. Plus, remember what I said? I loveeeee the tension between Rey and Ben. So, this just adds to that. **

**I'm sorry it took a bit to get this one out, but the daily updates will stop once I get back in school. This might be the last one before next Sunday. **

**After that expect weekend updates! **

**But... **

**What do you think Ben was thinking? What do you think Rey was going to say?**

**Let me know in the reviews! I would be more than excited to hear your theories! **

**Thanks again for the lovely responses to my story already, every follow, fav and review is read and appreciated! **

**Thanks, - London. **


	4. The Battle of Celistac I

**Thus we enter the era of school, an thus ends the era of daily updates; rest in beautiful peace my free-time... **

**Enter: Weekend updates**_ (Even though this is getting posted Monday)_

**I kinda wanted to chill and take a break after writing a lot in the last chapter anyways,**

**I've been constantly thinking of ways too improve this story, and one of them is figurative language. Brushing up on some old skills, I brought some two pages worth of different literary devices and their meanings. **

**Oh, yea I started to name the chapters too. **

**I was going to write another story called 'Monster' but it would just take to much time away from this one. Unless I blend parts of that story with this one- which I won't. I'm just rambling **

**Let me know in the reviews if I should add more romance or more fighting to this story. I feel there needs to be a conflict, but I don't want that to take away from the Reylo dynamic. I have a feeling, that the conflict will only strengthen their bond. **

**Sorry if you don't ever read these, but thanks if you do! **

**Keep the follows and reviews pouring in, the more you respond the faster I write. **

**Thanks again- London.**

* * *

The sirens blared, cutting through thick haze of the late summer night air. The buzz of the party still hung around the edges of the base, while fighter pilot scrambled and the ships were loaded. On top of the hill that carried the hanger inside it's earth core, Rey was furiously digging through the wooden crate that contained her clothes.

"It was right here!" Rey hissed through gritted teeth, tossing shirts vest and even poncho's to the side; she had forgotten where she had put Luke's light saber. "God damn it!" She yelled, hitting the bottom of her crate clothes strewn across the floor. The night was perfect, until now, everything was lining up to be _the _night, but no. Realty must put a cap on her feminine teenage dreams. "Ben?!" Rey called, getting up to look at her bed to see if it had fallen off in her sleep. "Have you seen my saber? Or Leia's!?" Rey looked up only for a moment to see if Ben was there, when he strolled in, she returned to destroying her place up the process of looking for the saber. A dazzling scarf whizzed by Ben's head, chuckling at the sight before him, and what he had just seen on he floor next to the door.

"Ahem..." Ben cleared his throat not-so-subtly to get the frantic Jedi's attention. Rey turned to face him, her face flushed "I think I found your missing items?" He casually pointed down next to him, where the two sabers sat neatly propped against the wall. Rey, while sighing with relief, also hit herself in the square in the head with her palm.

"Its not like me to be forgetful.." She muttered, standing up as she slowly walked too pick up her weapon of choice. "I always get nervous before a fight... I just never show it" She muttered angrily, clicking the saber onto her waist; where it was meant to be. Ben sighed, he never was afraid of fighting, but he could imagine why Rey would be.

"It's okay, nothing is going to happen to you Rey." He flashed a reassuring smile at her. Rey hurried past him and out the door, signaling for him to follow Ben closed his mouth, he was going to say more, but figured Rey was in a hurry to get to the Falcon. He rushed after her, out the door and down the long winding path towards the hangar, where ships were fueling up; getting ready for a battle.

"We need to head to debriefing, follow me." Rey said, quickly turning the corner once they got to the hangar. They quickly walked along the cool, black walls on the outskirts of the hangar, avoiding the mass of fighters hurrying to get to their stations. The night air once filled with a calm sense of happiness was now filled with an electrical hum of tension and unease. Following Rey, the two ducked under support beams and skirted around X-wings, eventually making it the large circular holographic debriefing area. Poe, Finn and other high ranking officers stood closest, while the others gathered around.

"What we know so far: is that two Star Destroyers are hovering around the capitol mining city on the moon of Celistac." The group murmured, as Poe kept his situation rundown going. "Many of you know, that is where we get a lot of our explosive materials-" Poe wasn't finished when a Sargent spoke up.

"I thought we destroyed their fleet on Exegol!" The group chimed in with their agreement, Poe let out a sigh looking right at Ben.

"I wish that were the case, but that was only the Emperors fleet, not that of the remaining First Order." Rey, looked at Ben who nodded solemnly, that was true. The group gasped in anger, knowing their war was still very much alive.

"It looks like the First Order is lashing out, maybe in fear- but we have to stop this before they regain control of certain systems." Finn added, propping himself up against the round table, addressing the group as second in command with Poe. They others mumbled their agreements "We need to be careful, the First Order might feel the war is over, so they'll try some dirty tactics." Poe nodded in his agreement

"Watch your six, and watch for war crimes." Finn, after hearing Poe mention war crimes, looked right into Ben's eyes. Rey felt the pang of resentment from across the room, looking at Finn she gave him to eye to knock it off. Poe continued "Ground teams will deploy to the city, secure high population areas and protect the main mining ports- our fighters will try and take out any TIE and Star Destroyers we encounter." He looked around at all the troops surrounding him. "Our main goal is to protect our supply chain, and to keep civilians safe." The group got louder in support, Rey felt a bit of pride, this was always the Resistance she had heard about.

"Lets go." Finn finished, the gathering quickly dispersing away towards their ships and stations. Rey turned to Ben, who just stared at the holographic project of two First Order Star Destroyers.

"You'll ride with me, Poe will give more specific orders in the Falcon." She tugged at his right arm, getting his attention so he would look down at her. "You're doing the right thing- don't let the others discourage you." Rey reached for his hand, wrapping her fingers around his hand. "They'll see how much we need you." She finished her mini speech, and Ben was still uncertain- but more willing to follow her as she lead the way out of the busy hangar to the Falcon, which was already warmed up and ready for flight.

"Rey, is it okay if I use Leia's saber?" Ben asked quietly as the landing bay opened on the Falcon, X-Wings and other Resistances ships taking off in the background. Rey stopped herself to turn and face him, she was already halfway up the ramp.

"Of course it is, she was your mother!" Rey unhooks her second saber from her waist, tossing it at Ben before turning quickly to head up the ramp into the Falcon. Ben smiled, gazing on his mothers saber in his hands. Snapping out of the memories, he followed Rey with long strides.

* * *

The sights of hyperspace glowed around Chewie, Rey and Ben. They had all been to battle before, but this one had a different feel. It was, after all, the first time Ben was truly on the side of the light and fighting for it. While for Rey, it was the first time she would fight along side of Ben Solo. They did fight against Snoke together, but she was on an emotional roller coaster with him then.

"Poe is sending us to assist a small squad of soldiers in their attempt to secure city hall and two crucial trading centers." Rey instructed, sitting up right in the chair next to the space chess table. Ben leaned against the wall, listening carefully "He stressed the importance of keeping the populace safe; he also said we need to watch out for city killing weapons- while these are the main targets of our fighters, they could get a shot off." Rey finished up her explanation and Ben thought for a moment, flipping his mothers saber in the air.

"The First Order is going to blow the shit out of this city; one of our-" Ben retracted his pronoun usage "One of their strategies is too instill fear. With the Emperors fleet no more, they are going to want to flew their might." He stood up tall "Rey, they will fire everything they got at all targets, even civilian. We can't hold back-" He looked down again. "I should have spoken up at debrief, but they are going to be more desperate then you think. We might be able to catch deserters and... well if we win this battle the war is one step closer to being over... but if we loose; the war will continue, for awhile" Rey felt her heart sink. It wasn't that she didn't know the importance of this battle, but the loss of life saddened her core.

"I will do everything I can to destroy these monsters." Rey spoke with a certain tone, and Ben could sense her anger. Something about this attack flipped a switch in her. "Ordering attacks on innocent people, who the hell does that?" She hit her hand on the table "It's not always the fighters who loose the most. These poor people will need to rebuild." Ben dropped his gaze, feeling awful again about his past. His malicious actions were driven by forces above him, but it still didn't negate what he had done. _I've ordered fire on innocent people before... _he quietly thought to himself. Rey sat in silences, fuming over her own words. Feeling her rage, fueled Ben's regret which in turn caused a chemical reaction in his brain. He began to grow angry

"I'm going to kill all of them." He whispered, feeling his anger give him strength. _No, Ben stop. You're acting like a Sith again. _Rey, could feel the shift of emotions inside the tight metal halls of the Falcon.

"Not if I can get to them first," Rey sneered behind gritted teeth, attempting to control her anger. "They will pay for what they are doing" She added to the comment from Ben. The fearful buzz in the room quickly turned to icy resolve as the two began to rally behind their anger for the obscenities committed by the First Order. Chewie called back as the Falcon neared it's destination, signalling the start of the battle.

"I'll get my things." Ben muttered, walking down a small corridor. When he was out of sight, Rey hit herself lightly; mad that she had let her anger get the best of her. _Stop it, Rey, you know what happens when you get furious? Bad things... just breathe. They will get their justice eventually. _Rey tried to rationalize with herself. Getting excessively angry was not something she could afford to do, especially with her bloodline, and their current situation. She looked at her hands, all the power she had; the ability to take on divisions of troops by herself. The ability she had to get retribution for all the crimes committed by the First Order was unparalleled by anyone else, except maybe Ben; but Rey was a Palpatine, whether or not she accepted it, did not void the fact her heritage was her greatest power. Rey could use it all, but it would back track all the progress she had made when she refused to strike down her grandfather.

"Anger isn't the enemy." Rey hissed to herself alone in the halls as she felt the Falcon come out of hyperspace. "The First Order is." She stood, feeling the bumps of turbulence. Quickly realizing that Chewie needed her to be the pilot, Rey rushed back to the cockpit, and the sight before her eyes was shocking, even to her.

Scores of tie fighters bombarded the city, their screeching engines roared in a deadly harmony as they wrecked havoc on the innocent. Rey pulled the Falcon's speed lever down, they needed to make a slow approach, an attempt to avoid the scanners. Her eyes caught onto an Interceptor, its speed increased as it flew straight into the side of a building. _Oh my god... _Rey thought, diving the Falcon down towards the skyline.

"Chewie, we need you to let us out on top of a building near city hall, away from First Order fire- alright?" Buildings rushed below them as they made their landing approach, most fire was diverted from the city to the fleet of Resistance X-wing's arriving in masses. Giving Rey and many of the troop carriers safe access to the grounds of the city. The sounds of their shots thundered above the thoughts in Rey's mind.

No more than two seconds had passed when Chewie had found a safe place to drop off the Jedi, with communication with Resistance ground forces, Rey and Ben would be teaming up with the 7th Calvary division. Rey hurried back out of the cockpit and towards the exit ramp, where she met with Ben. The symphony of Tie and X-wing's engines blended with their shots to form a perfect orchestra; amplified now that Rey has stepped outside.

"Ben! We are going to meet up with the 7th, got it?" Ben nodded while no more than two hundred feet away from them a Tie came crashing down, its explosion casting a heat wave and shooting debris onto Rey's back, pelting the Falcon in hail like pieces of metal. Sounds of small blaster fire also erupted from below them on the street.

"We need to to move!" Ben called, turning before she could answer, heading for a rooftop exit on the Old Republic style building. Rey followed without saying a word, a stray shot riding up and hitting the roof next to them, sending tiny shards of the tiles in all directions. Rey quickly dared into the stairwell, Ben force holding the door opened for her.

Rey didn't speak a word heading down the stairs, nothing needed to be said. The sounds of war penetrated the brick walls of the building, growing more ominous once they were inside, perhaps muffling the explosions lowered the octave they were originally in. The duo's footsteps echoed as they passed each floor, eventually reaching the main lobby. Rey looked around while Ben searched for an exit, the place was empty and the lights flickered with the sound of each explosion. The rumble grew with each new bang, like thunder rolling over the hills.

"Rey! They are here!" Ben had his head poking out of a large window, looking south down the street he saw the squad of Resistance ground forces. Rey hurried through the rest of the lobby. Rey only flinched, not pausing for the earth shattering crack of a Tie getting knocked out of the sky only a block away. She got behind him, clutching the wall Rey peaked her head, and she noticed the troops cross the street to head into the hotel.

"General Rey!" The sergeant called, entering the building first. _General? God damn it Poe I am not ready to be a general..._ Rey turned to face the Sergeant as his squad hurried in behind him. They all looked battle hardened and ready, the opposite of Rey and Ben; who appeared to be like two civilians.

"Yes? Sir what is your name?" Rey asked once everyone was inside, their radios buzzed with info on the ground assault. Ben tilted his head to focus on what was being discus. The Sergeant gave her a salute, his squad taking up defense positions in the hotel lobby, mounting against walls and windows.

"General Rey, I am Sergeant Dvorak." He didn't break his salute, Rey motioned for him to drop it, she was not ready to deal with the formalities. He dropped his salute instantly at her command. "My squad and I are made up of ten light infantry, 5 heavy weapons and two sharpshooters." Ben, who was clearly better with military matter than Rey listened intently. "We are at your command and will be assisting on your mission. I head already briefed my men on what we are going to do, but if there are any changes they will listen to your command." He was so disciplined, Leia had really done a great job with her army. Rey had some big shoes to fill...

"Please, call me Rey." She patted his arm, trying to establish a friendly connection to the Sergeant. "Mr. Dvorak, Ben Solo and I will be leading the way, try to stay close and don't fire at anything that isn't a stormtrooper." She looked him dead in the eye, showing that she was serious. "Ben may be a private, but he is a Jedi. If he does something and needs help, help him." Dvorak nodded, turning to his men.

"You heard the General." He picked up his blaster, returning to a defensive position among his men. Rey smiled, turning to Ben, she gasped as his face was pale.

"Are you alight?" She asked, when she noticed what was probably on his mind. She heard, marching of boots, stormstrooper boots, coming down the street. Ben looked at her, his face returning to a normal color, he unclicked his saber from his hip and ignited it. This action grabbed some of Dvorak's squad by surprise.

"Yes, I am." No later then the last syllable got out of the dark Jedi's mouth, did one of the troops posted up at a window shout the first words of the battle of Celistac for Rey.

"Contact!"

Blaster fire erupted, Rey ducked and grabbed Luke's saber, igniting it. The hum of the elegant weapon buzzed in her ear as shots rang out. Rey had fought before, but most of the large scale conflicts she was left out of due to her value to the Resistance. She hated watching men get treated like pawns and her be treated like a queen. Power surged through her arms and she truly felt like a Jedi, nay, she felt like _Rey. B_ut in the light of rifle fire and the saber, Rey could only muster two thoughts.

_I'm ready. _

* * *

**There ya go. **

**Part 1 of a three or so part conflict in the early stages of this novel. I had to make up a planet but its okay. **

**I really like writing fighting scenes, but they are sometimes very hard. Too much detail can slow down whats meant to be a fast paced action scene; while too little detail can make the story feel like its choppy and hollow.**

**Its alright. **

**I'll live. **

**Except**** weekly updates, but I'm heading out of town a few weeks from now so there will be a break. **

**Reviews, favs, and follows are all welcomed and appreciated! Say your opinion, I don't mind**

**Thanks,**

**London.**


	5. The Battle of Celistac II

**Well, back to the grind. **

**This chapter should be quick, but it might not be depending on where I think I should end it. I have this whole battle leading to one event, so I don't want to rush it. **

**I have a clear path laid out for this battle but I'm not sure how to format it**

**I'm prolly going to break up this battle into parts I II and III, for my own sake so I don't make a 10,000 word chapter that takes 3 weeks to make. **

**The chapters will be shorter, but this helps me get them out to you guys faster, which is all I want to do. I've never had a story this popular, so I really want your guy's input on what I should make. **

**I have clear archs for Ben, Rey and even Finn (Which I can't explain which cuz it'll give the story away) but I want your opinions on what you also want to see. **

**Even though the endpoint might be the same, what happens along the way can be decided by you. **

**Do I need your ideas? No, not at all. I just love it when a story becomes a living breathing thing, and with your help I can. **

**In my opinion, I think this story would be great without any suggestions; but I know from experience that seeing your ideas come to life by someone who can write them well is a great feeling. **

**Anyways, happy reads. **

**Part II**

**Thanks for reading all my nonsense!**

**\- London**

* * *

Rey ran to the window, blaster shots cracking the air sending pulses of energy through the air. She hit the wall with a thud, more shots seemed to hit their building, sending sizzling shards of brick falling down onto the street.

"Top right!" A solider yelled just next to Rey as she took cover behind a low wall. She glanced to Ben, who had asked for a blaster, and was now shooting out a doorway. The shots seemed to gather intensity, Rey turned off her saber and reached for her thing. _Hurry up! _She thought in the heat of the skirmish, she reached and undid her holster and took out her small hand cannon.

"I'm hit!" Another solider yelled in a grimace, Rey watched him fall backwards clutching his collarbone area, sensing their need for support, Rey peaked over the edge to pear out the window. Multiple stormtroopers lay on the street, dead or wounded by Dvorak's men. Taking a quick head count, Rey saw about 8 stormtroopers left, she brought her blaster up with two hands and fired at a trooper who was peaking over an abandoned speeder.

Miss, going wide right by a few inches.

_Shit, c'mon Rey focus! _She internally rallied herself, it had been a minute since she had last touched her blaster. She ducked quickly before firing again, another trooper had shot at her. The shot landed a few feet behind her, breaking the tile on the lobby floor. Rey exhaled and stood up, aiming at the trooper who had just shot at her.

Miss, this time hitting a nearby lamppost.

_What the hell! _Rey hit the blaster to her head. Shooting clearly wasn't going to work. Glancing over at Ben, he seemed to be shooting fine. It must be the Solo in him. Peaking her head above, she noticed the speeder was quite small, and that two other stormtroopers had dropped due to the stellar shooting of the Resistance squad.

"Rey, shoot!" Ben yelled, looking at his Jedi lady friend not doing anything, just looking at the troopers. Rey ignored him and stood up, sticking her hand out the air bended in the sound of the force. Ben smiled, realizing what she was doing. Rey closed her eyes, her arm shaking as the speeder lifted of the ground. The Resistance troopers noticed this and stopped firing, while the stormtroopers stopped firing and turned at the speeder.

In a flick of her wrist, the speeder was sent hurling into the small gathering of stormtroopers, squishing them against the wall of the building like bugs. The shooting stopped in an instant after the dust settled in the street . Rey shot her eyes open, many of the Resistance squad turned to her, and the street had grown spooky silent. The only sound that could be heard was the creaking of the metal on the speeder. Rey took deep breathes, looking at Ben, who looked over at the speeder and the dead stormtroopers, shocked but happy that Rey used her powers.

"I shot." Rey joked, beaming a smile at Ben. Rey, feeling somewhat empowered by her latest show of strength. Even after everything she had done for the light-side already, it was good to know she hadn't lost any power from the time when she was 'dead' on the floor on Exegol. Dusting herself off she opened the door to exit, the glass had been broken by the blaster fire and whatever remained was knocked out by the Jedi as she stepped out. The other troops exchange murmurs with each other, but follow her out. Ben smiled, watching her leave. _Even in combat she is beautiful... _Ben thought inwardly, staring at her side profile.

Soon the others were all out of the building, and Rey had left Dvorak take the lead with her and Ben bringing up the rear. Once outside, the sights and sounds of the aerial battle were clear. Rey watched as the scores of X-wings and TIE fighters moved chaotically in the dance of death above her head. Small arms fire could be heard at every angle, so the group hugged the right side of the street, pressing up against the brick and stone of the walls. Rey saw that some of the speeders were abandoned and some were destroyed, still smoldering.

"How many clicks until we reach the civilian hold out at city hall?" A corporal called from the mid section of the line of troops. Dvorak turned his head to address his squad, Rey felt Ben bump into her from behind. Startled at first, but relaxed when she noticed he was just gazing at the sky. He must have not noticed the group had stopped for a second as Dvorak explained.

"We are about 4 clicks south of our destination, with all the help we could get, we avoided most of the First Order patrols..." Rey started to block him out, hearing the force call to her. Rey heard the cries of young girl, much like she was back on Jakku, and the sounds of blaster fire coming from down the street. she stood, frozen in shock. _They are going to fire on children... _She quickly snapped out of her trance and ran to the front of the pack, Ben looked at her confused.

"We need to hurry!" Rey called back frantically as the squad watched her run past, none of them moved with her. Rey wondered why they didn't follow, she stopped and turned to face them. "That is an order!" The fighters nodded and rushed after her, abandoning their zone and sweep plan. Ben still didn't know why, but he trusted her enough not to question it.

The group ran quickly down the street and the Capitol building came into view moments later. First Order troops encircled the parts Rey could see, engaging in combat with some civilians who took up arms. Troop carries were hovering near the roof, trying to land a squad on top to crush the rebellious people. Rey looked at Dvorak

"Tell the X-wings to give us air support on our assault of the Capitol, tell them its an order!" He nodded, put his hand up to her ear and told the coms they needed air support on their position. Once the order had been given out, Rey dashed forward once again, this time with greater speed. The foot solider who were trained to run, were barely able to keep up. After a few seconds of running, Ben realized at the speed they were going, it posed a risk to them.

"Rey, slow down!" Ben yelled from the back of the group, the sounds of fighting and the roar of ion engines building as they approached. Rey turned to face him, she opened her mouth to speak but before a single word got out, a tie came crashing down not even fifty feet away from where she stood. In the ensuing explosion, Rey got knocked to the ground, and bricks and stones from the building it struck raced towards the other members of the squad.

The soldiers in the squad ducked at the blast, brushing themselves off. Ben looked around for Rey as the dust settled, loud booms and crack from the lazer cannons echoed in the street as the dogfights above, while small arms fire from the capitol made its way to Ben's ear. He still couldn't spot Rey.

'Rey!" Ben called, while Dvorak was on one knee helping his private up. He looked around frantically, eventually he stopped her. Rey was getting up from the middle of the street. She was covered in the dust and small bricks that had crashed down onto her, she was bleeding from a small cut above her left eyebrow. Ben ran over to her, getting on a knee like the Sergeant just was to help her up. "Rey, we can't go in so fast!" Rey gave him a glare as she stood up "We need to wait for your air support to clear out some of those troops, we would get slaughtered!" Ben held her arm still, looking into her eyes, he saw a tear drop down her cheek.

"We can't slow down, Ben!" She jerked away from him grasp, looking at the Capitol just a block away. "Innocent people, kids, are going to die if we don't hurry." Rey turned back to face him, glancing at the group of soldiers who waited for them to return.

"So will they, if we don't wait!" Ben said, giving her a look as another tie crashed behind them, this time much further away. Rey stomped her feet, giving him an icy look.

"I will go by myself if I have too." Rey proclaimed, before taking out her saber and turning to leave. The blue blade shot out, illuminating her face and humming over the noise of the battle. Ben looked back at the squad, before grabbing Rey's hand, stopping her forward motion and turned to face him angrily. "What?" Ben nodded towards the squad who were still waiting for an order.

"At least tell them to hang back until you're ready for their support." He said, unsheathing his saber from his hip as well. Rey nodded, and ran back to Dvorak. Ben waited and watched as Rey exchanged words and nods. Pointing towards the building, the Sergeant handed her a coms device and patted her shoulder. Rey hurried back, the dog fighting in the sky had grown more intense by the sounds of it. Ben looked up, and indeed swarms of tie's and X-wings danced with death. Rey brushed by him, looking into his eyes when he looked down at her.

"I will see you when I'm finished." She said, looking up and down at him. Truth be told, Rey wasn't nervous about what she was going to do, she was more worried about whether or not she was in time. Ben laughed, which caught Rey by surprise.

"I'm coming with you." He said firmly, walking ahead of Rey. "I'm sure you don't need my help, but I won't let you go alone." He didn't look back at her when he said this because he was too worried Rey would sense his emotions, his feelings, for her. Those which had always been there, but he was to scared to admit it. Rey grew a smile, she didn't want to go alone; but like Ben with his feelings, she was to afraid to admit it.

"Thank you, Ben." She whispered before running after him, quickly brushing past him and taking the lead. Rey couldn't help but smile as she charged into battle with Ben trailing not to far behind her, after all, only he could make her stomach fill with butterflies in a moment like this. As the air danced over Rey's face, she remembered her life on Jakku. How lonely it was, how desperately she wanted a family. Now that she had found one in Finn, Poe and BB-8, she would do anything to protect them, and help them. But these feelings for Ben were different, they always had been different, but now was not the time to figure out herself. _ Just wait Rey soon you will have all the time in the world to figure him out. _Lost in her thoughts, Rey hadn't noticed that the Capitol building was right in front of her. She skidded to a halt, with Ben bumping into her from behind.

"Why did we stop?" He asked, getting to her left as Rey dropped down onto her stomach. Ben did the same, no longer confused anymore.

"Look." Rey whispered to him, scanning the horizon in front of her. They needed to be quick, but Rey knew you had to know what you were up against before you made your attack. Already gifted at using her surroundings, due to her time as a scavenger, she scanned the street.

What she saw was challenging, that was clear, but doable.

They lay at an intersection just south of the buildings main garden, which was also its entrance. There was a large black fence, with many holes in from the shooting of the storm troopers, which protected the garden that was about 80 feet long. Some of the trees were on fire, bushes and flowers were trampled by the large fight that had taken place. From the looks of it, the city people had managed to keep the stormtroopers at bay and fled deeper into the building. However, they were out numbered.

On the street were multiple troop landers, some that had just arrived before the X-wings cleared the skies above. Rey observed their potions, and the scores of stormtroopers around them. _Each lander carries about 20 troopers, _Rey thought, scanning the lawn and street. _Judg__ing by the bodies on the ground, hmm... it looks like one hundred and twenty troopers we need to take out. _Rey took a breathe

"Alright, Ben." She spoke softly but firmly, getting his attention. "See those two landers?" He nodded, and Rey pointed "It looks like they are new, so I want you to take those out-" She paused, looking to the left where the other three landers. "While I get those ones." Ben nodded again, and Rey looked at him. "We need to be quick, the first two are close together for me- but the second it already on the lawn. If you finish before me, make your way towards that one." Rey finished and looked back at the gathering of troopers. They seemed to be waiting for the order to attack. Rey also noticed now that they had two artillery cannons being set up, ready to fire at the building.

"Judging by their formation," Ben said, nudging Rey's arm to get her attention "They are getting orders on how to attack." He paused for a moment, gazing into Rey's beautiful hazel eyes. Regaining his focus, he continued. "This process takes a while, due to the command structure... if we hit the fast and hard without being seen on approach, it should catch them off guard and allow us to be swift." Rey opened her mouth to reply, but nodded instead. The plan made sense, all they had to do was go for it. Rey looked into Ben's eyes

"You ready?" She whispered, without looking away from him. Ben nodded, gazing back at her eyes, they were magical. Rey waited for his response, but he was lost in her eyes again. "Ben, are you ready?" Her tone was louder, snapping him out of it. Ben blinked a few times

"Y-yes. I am." Rey nodded neatly, before getting up from her prone position and crouching low. Ben got up, and dunked instead of crouched. Both went off to their separate directions, eventually to meet up at the fountain in the center of the lawn.

* * *

Rey unholstered her saber from her hip, but did not ignite it just yet. She slunk like a cat, her red outfit might have stuck out like a sore thumb, but Rey was sticking to the shadows.

Approaching the landers was a tricky process, she had told Ben what the main plan was, but it was a skeleton compared to what actually needed to be done. She was only a few meters away now, and stopped next to a trashcan to get one last look before she made her attack.

_So... if I go around the back of the lander, I could take one or two of them out before I would need to go on the defensive... but hmmm_ Rey bit her tongue, thinking hard about what next. _If I go from the front, I could expose my back to the other carrier... _She glanced over to where Ben was supposed to be, he was waiting behind a carrier just like she was. _Shit! If he attacks before me, my landers will notice- I need to time it perfectly... _Rey noticed Ben was moving towards the right side of the carrier. _Now or never Rey... top, left or right... if I start at the top, no- bad idea... _She thought hard for another moment, but her time was running out.

"Back it is..." she whispered to her, slowly walking towards the end of the carrier. They would be a trooper or two waiting at the end, and she was going to use him as a shield. Rey braced herself against the cold metal of the lander, slowly dragging her hand across it to get a good feel for the objects on the other side. A neat force trick that was very useful in battle.

_Aha, nine troopers... wait- where is the tenth? _Rey stopped focusing on the people behind the wall, and saw the missing trooper a few inches in front of her. His plaster was aimed right at her chest. _How could I have been so dumb..._ Rey hissed at herself

"Stop right there!" The voice came through the helmet, Rey reached for her saber, igniting it in the hum of blue. The trooper saw this, and reacted instinctively by ramming his blast up into Rey's face with blunt force.

"Ah-!" Rey's head flipped back, at the same moment fiery pain shot through Rey's nose and face as she stumbled backwards, seeing stars she somehow managed to keep a grip on her saber. Dazed and reeling from the upper cut, she fell to onto her bottom, one hand reaching for her face. Her nose was bleeding, she grimaced at the pain before regaining her focus. She was lucky that the trooper had not gone to kill her, but rather capture her as he had reached down and grabbed her right arm.

"Come here, girl." The trooper said with venom in his voice. Rey slowly regained awareness for her surroundings, her eyes wide she took the saber in her left hand and jabbed it through the troopers torso as he bent over to detain her. The blow to her face was just enough to piss her off, using the pain to sharpen her already deadly vision.

The trooper dropped dead to her side and Rey stood up, wiping the blood off her nose and upper lip with her arm, before quickly dashing out from behind the lander. Much like a leopard pounces on its prey, Rey attacked a trooper who was coming around the corner. She launched herself of the ground, grabbing his arm with one hand, and using the saber to strike a blow with her other. The head of her victim fell to the ground with a thud, getting the attention of the remaining eight troopers. Rey sneered at the sight of them turning to face her, blasters aimed for her head.

"Shoot her!" One for them called before a hailstorm of blaster fire rained down on her. Quickly, Rey deflected each of the shots that would have landed on her small frame, sending them off into various directions, one even returned to hit one of the troopers who hadn't taken cover yet. Rey focused had, moving her wrist and warms precisely. Rey knew she couldn't just stand in one place deflecting all the incoming fire, and quickly darted up and onto the lander still deflecting the shots that came close to her.

"She's on top!" One cried out, getting the attention of her next opponent- who was quickly dispatched by a saber blow as Rey jumped down onto of him, sinking her saber into his head. Now vulnerable to shots, Rey force pushed the body of the trooper into a group of four standing inside the lander, knocking them down for enough time for Rey to unholster her pistol and fire onto a trooper hiding behind a weapons cache. Her shot was accurate, going through the lens of his helmet, killing him instantly. With him gone, Rey only had the troopers inside the lander to deal with before she could move onto the next lander.

"Unit 7 needs backup on-" The trooper had no time to finish his call for help as a shot from Rey's pistol had entered his chest. As if it wasn't enough, Rey charged into the lander, saber drawn in a jabbing position. The three remaining troopers were not expecting the speed at which the Jedi came at them, with her first charge impaling the core of one trooper. The others shot at her, but only managed to hit their fallen unit member who was still on the end of her blade.

"Go to hell!" Rey called in anger, kicking the dead trooper off her saber, she reached out and force pulled one of them onto her blade, only stopping once he had reached the hilt. The troopers arms went limp and his body fell the ground like his entire unit before him, the metallic clunk of his body hitting the floor echoed inside the hollow lander. Rey turned to look at the last remaining trooper had no hope in defeating Rey, and he recognized this.

"Please, mad'am." He dropped his weapon and put his arms up in surrender. "I don't want to die." His voice quivered through the static of his helmet. Rey looked at him, he was clearly a low ranking storm trooper, she realized she was taking deep breaths and her grip around the saber was constricting. _I lost myself for a bit.._ Rey thought, and in a show of humanity, she turned off her saber. Once the blue blade was gone she could hear the sigh of relief from the trooper. "Thank you mad'am." He said, his voice still quivered.

Rey stepped over the white body of his fellow storm trooper and approached him. Doing good, felt good, and she didn't want to kill him in cold blood. That's something a _Palpatine _would do.

"How old are you?" She asked, stepping up to him. This trooper was slightly taller than her, so she figured he was young, and Rey could sense his fear. He tightened his stance and answered back without skipping a beat.

"I am seventeen, ZA-4509, Infantry." His answer was so formal, so lifeless, it pained Rey to know the training and brain washing he had to go through; and he was only seventeen. She put her hand on his arm, showing him it was okay.

"Well- I'm going to call you er-" She paused for a minute, thinking of a name like Finn's. "Your new name is Zach, I'm Rey, and I'm giving you a chance to run." Rey couldn't see the expression on his face, but she could sense his overwhelming feelings joy. "But, Zach, you can't go back to the First Order." She felt his excitement die "You need to run away, shed your armor and run down the street. You can start a new life, I'm giving you this second chance."

Rey didn't expect him to take off his helmet so soon, but he did. Zach was a dirty blonde with blue eyes, who looked scared out of his mind. Rey looked into his eyes, and took a step back, motioning for him to run.

"If you leave now, they will think I killed you." Rey noticed his eyes followed hers, he looked star struck. "They won't chase after you for treason." Zach slowly nodded, and took a step forward his legs were wobbly.

"Thank you, Rey." His voice was soft now that his helmet was off, and he took a few more steps towards the exit of the lander, before turning to Rey who was watching him leave. "I will never forget this, I promise." Rey smiled, feeling a new ray of light fill her being. Zach slowly walked out, but quickly started to run down the street. Rey sighed, _the light side will always prevail... _she thought, looking down at the body of the trooper she had killed. _I'm sorry I had to kill you.. _she thought solemnly as she slowly stepped out of the lander into the day light. Not a second had past from when Rey had stepped out into the open then to when she heard the distant call of a storm trooper.

"Fire!"

Rey jolted around to see where the voice had come from.

_Fuck_...

The other lander had witnessed the fight Rey was just in and had turned the small artillery around to wait until she would step out to fire at her.

Without a seconds notice, Rey felt the blast of an explosion just meters away from her. The red glare of ion cannon filled her vision as she felt the power of the explosion lift her body like a rag doll and toss her petite from yards from where she last stood. Rey tried to grab onto something as she flew through the air, but the blast had her ears ringing and her core shaken.

_This is how I die; again, I guess.. _

Rey thought to herself, expecting to feel the violent impact from the ground, but she never felt it. The concussive shock wave had sent her brain into a deadly game of ping pong with her skull, Rey was unconscious long before she would hit the ground.

The world was nothing but black for her now.

She drifted in the limbo of her own mind, aware of her thoughts but not of her body or her pain.

_I'm sorry Ben... _

This was her last thought, before even her state of limbo gave way to nothingness.

* * *

**I'm already sorry about the cliffhanger. **

**I really, really didn't want to put it in, but damn it felt sooo good to type. **

**Its pretty late on a school night, for me to still be up and working on this, so you better appreciate it. **

**Drop a review to show your support, it can be criticism or ideas you want to share; all are welcome. **

**Pray for Australia, by the way. **

**Until next time, **

**\- London**


	6. The Battle of Celistac III

**I should let it be known why this chapter wasn't posted on last Sunday...**

**I was out of town over the weekend, for a quick little vacation, and was unable to finish it in enough time. I am sorry, I should've let you guys know last chapter, but I failed to remember until I sat down to start this one.**

**Now, onto the real intro...**

**Alright, alright...**

**I should explain myself as to why I am putting so much detail into the fighting/battle scenes. **

**"This is a Reylo, right?" - Yes it is.**

**"Why is there so much fighting and less Ben on Rey action?" - Character development. **

**I am including these fight scenes for a reason. It builds up conflict inside each character, and progresses the external story forward with the war against the First Order. **

**With the two fighting side by side in the heat of battle, they really get to know each other. **

**Its a long arch, but so worth while when it is completed.**

**If I do a good enough job at writing, you should be able to feel the emotions of Rey and Ben. If I did an okay job, you should be able to feel a little bit of it. **

**All's well that ends well, I guess.**

**Hope you like it,**

** Part III**

**-****London**

* * *

Being good, doing good, _believing _in good.

Everyone thinks it will grant you good in return, be it in the form of karma or passage to a paradise far beyond the grave.

Eventually however, you will make a mistake, even the ones you never meant to make; even the ones you made while doing good.

Thus in war, so it seems, mercy _is _the mistake.

If that _weren't_ the case, the war would've ended when Luke destroyed the first death star; the First Order would never have risen. Rey wouldn't have been dumped on Jakky by her parents, who were fleeing the grasp of their own parentage.

These were the reflective thoughts that went through Rey before she became aware that she was unaware of where she was.

_I did everything right. _Rey thought, staring into the blackness of her subconscious. _I stuck to my pla__n, killed the troopers with swift strokes. I didn't exaggerate their pain, no! I was quick... I even let Zach go. For what? _Rey was aware of what had happened, and how she ended up into this void. She could not, however, feel her body or her surroundings. All she saw was blackness, hearing her own thoughts manifest to become her voice in the void where she float. _Just so I could get killed, by nobodies? Trained from birth nobodies?! No, don't get angry Rey, you are a nobody like them. Ha! No I'm not- I'm a Palpatine! No, not that, what I am is a very dead Jedi._ She paused, taking a goof look around._ Is this what it is like, in the afterlife? _She questioned her own state, where she was. It seemed to echo around a few times, and for the first time since they landed on this planet to fight, Rey was scared. _Hello! _She called out into the nothingness, waiting a moment, but no response. _Am I in hell? No- Rey that is impossible. You showed mercy, kindness, you saved Zach and many others, you are not in hell; you are not in hell! _Fear drove her to yell, echoing again in the endless sheet of black fog. Why was she still stuck? _This is something different..._ It wasn't long after that when the darkness parted to show light penetrate it, turning the color of her void to a yellowish grey. _Am I, waking up? Or am I going to meet the Jedi who came before... _The light grew stronger and stronger, turning her once black fog into a grey haze. Rey could faintly make out the sounds of the world she had though she left behind, but rather then welcome her back to reality the sounds split her conscious like a wasp stinging his unfortunate victim.

What she didn't know, was that Ben had saw what had happened, and in response had rushed to her aid. He had run up to her, after quickly taking care of his previous objective. Ben's legs trembled, despite the message his facial features would give off as he approached the body of Rey, who lay sprawled out like a cat bathing in the sun. Was he scared? Of course; as he ran to her fear made his limbs stiff, contrary to the leg wobble he was just experiencing. Ben had worked to hard saving his soul, saving her, to let Rey die this was. Once he had managed to get beside her body, he saw what he didn't see on the floor on Exegol.

Rey was breathing, even more so her eyes were closed.

The sun mixed with smoke, shining down on her face casting shadows that appeared like ghost dancing on her fair skin. His hands were shaking, from fear or from relief he couldn't tell, he cupped his gloved hand over her face. She was dirty; a small cut was bleeding blow her eye, but she would be okay. He wouldn't let anyone hurt her. Blaster fire sounded from Ben's left, reacting without taking his hand off Rey's cheek he held the shots in place, casting a faint red glow over the ancient influenced architecture of the garden where he kneel and she lay.

"I'll be back." He said with a soothing tone not to far removed from their night on Ahch-To. Rising to face their attackers, Ben ignited his saber, secretly longing for the fear-instilling sight that was his former blade. Rey blinked her eyes open, her soft eyes glazed from the impact of the Ion cannon. Ben didn't see this, as he was already headed towards the small squad of stormtroopers who had inflicted the pain on Rey and countless others, but Rey noticed him walking away from her.

"Wait..." Her voice was weak, and everything seemed delayed for Rey. Reaching her arm out to call for Ben, she grabbed nothing but air and her arm folded back onto her chest. "Ben!" She called with more vigor, propping herself up after regaining awareness of her situation. The world seemed fuzzy when she leaned up, using her arms to support herself. She watched for a moment Ben strike down a trooper before marching onto the next, before she closed her eyes and let out a gasp of pain, pursing her eyebrows in reaction to the agony of the piercing headache bestowed upon her. "Ahh.." She opened her eyes again, trying to block out the pain and stand up to help Ben, which he didn't need.

_Whats wrong with me?_ Rey asked herself, as she staggered to her feet. Her head felt different, no, her whole body felt different and she hunched over to catch her breath just from the effort it took to stand up. With her hands on her knees, some of her focus began to come back to her.

Meanwhile, Ben was ripping apart the troopers who, as previous stated, had caused Rey this pain. His strikes clapped with thunderous might, taking off limbs and even cutting the ground in some instances. Controlling his anger was hard, in this moment but he was no longer Kylo Ren. Each of his moves were calculated with a somewhat clear train of thought, which made the power behind each swing that much more deadly.

Not far from the chaos Ben was causing, Rey had been reunited with her former insight to the battlefield. While the world was still fuzzy, and lightly confusing, she no longer needed her hands to support her standing. Looking around, she remembered what their plan was, and the cries of Ben's victims a few yards away reminded of her of why they were fighting- _The people!_ With a surge of new energy coursing through her young veins, Rey gathered herself to run, ready to charge back into battle to help Ben and save the children!

Rey managed three steps before falling down, pain slashing through her side like fire ants eating away at her ribs. "Argghh!" She gritted her teeth, hitting the ground with a solid thud. Rey clutched the side that hurt, confused but determined to find out why. She lightly ran her hands over the soft red cloth of her outfit, finding nothing out of the ordinary on first inspection. She went back over her ribs a second time, applying more pressure than before, and this found the source of the flaming hot pain.

She winced, feeling the pain of what could be a fractured rib. Looking down and over to the sight of the pain, she really couldn't care any less about what it was, she just needed it to stop. Still on the cobblestone pathway where she fell, Rey looked back over to where Ben was still fighting. By the countless white motionless bodies, however, she knew he was almost done. Letting out a small yelp, she broke past the pain barrier and stood up.

In that instant, Rey felt the pain in her side diet down. Her mind left her body temporarily towards the wide spread destruction, the aura of death that filled the streets and blanked the city. The feeling struck her, compassion filled her bones. _I hope everyone else is alright..._ Rey shook her head, she wouldn't know what to do if something happened to Finn, Poe or any of her friends. Determined not to let any of that happen, she marched on to meet up with Ben who had taken care of business with the remaining troopers.

With one hand clutching his ignited saber that was sunk deep into the chest of the last storm trooper, Ben twisted around to face the approaching Rey. His eyes lit up with sparks of joy, knowing we was alright, at least alright enough to get back up. She still clutched her side, and was walking with a slight limp. However, her eyes were determined, which Ben knew meant she was going to complete whatever she had in mind, even if she was in pain.

"Rey!" He took the saber out of the trooper, who dropped dead. "Are you alright?" Rey's hand dropped from her side to her thigh, upholstering her blaster. 'Rey..?" Ben was dumbfounded, _Is she about to shoot me?_ He tried to push that thought away, it was preposterous! He looked in her in the eyes, but in the same motion she pointed the tip of her blaster right up to Ben and fired without hesitation, making him flinch, preparing to feel the siring pain of a blaster shot.

The shot went left passed his head however, where a storm trooper dropped to the ground a few meters behind him. Ben let out a sigh, and Rey dropped her blaster back into its holster. Turning around, her witnessed the recently hit trooper fall forwards onto the ground. Making a clank as he hit.

"Did you actually think I was going to shoot you?" The voice of Rey caused him to turn again. Facing her, he could see the anger and disappointment in her eyes. She walked up closer, and for a brief moment, Ben thought back to the forest where they fought. His delayed response only made Rey feel worse, and he could sense it.

"No," He looked down at her, "It's just instinct." Ben wasn't lying, countless times had he been the focus of blaster fire, it was only in his nature to be skeptical. Rey too, knew this, and thus she let out a sigh.

"I'm glad your alright." Her voice was soft, and before Ben could even open his mouth to express his gratitude, Rey stepped forward to embrace him with a hug. Wrapping her arms around his sturdy trunk, pressing herself against him deeper until she could feel his heart beat through his clothes and his skin. Awkwardly, due to her unexpected action and the nature of who Ben was, he hugged her back. After a moment or two of the embrace, Ben still hadn't the slightest clue on way to say back. How could she still be worried about his safety when she was the one who was injured? After a few more moments of silence, he began to trace it all back and he felt his legs go numb, but that could wait for later.

"Don't we have people to save?" He asked cheekily, a smile plastered onto his face because of his recent discovery. Rey sighed, reluctantly letting go of her grip around the former Supreme Leader's waist. Pulling away, she caught a glance at his smile, making her stomach flutter with anticipation for a split second.

"Let's hurry this time." Rey said, speaking mostly to herself rather then to Ben. He nodded his agreement as Rey brushed past him, feeling her shoulder nudge past his arm. Her eyes were locked on the door ahead of them, saber in her hand. Ben admired her determination, he noticed it since their first meeting on Takodana. It appeared again in the face of Snoke, always ready to fight, even if it meant she might not make it.

"What will we do when we get to them?" Ben asked, his voice hung on the air as if he was still Kylo Ren. Rey didn't turn to face him, instead answering while continuing to walk through the destroyed garden.

"I will wait until the battle is over, protecting them." Ben couldn't see her face, but her expression was intense as her eye brows contracted closer together. He let out a sigh, internally disagreeing with Rey's new plan.

"Why don't we just let your Resistance friends guard them." Rey tilted her head to listen better, confused as to why he wouldn't say _their _Resistance friends. "We could be of better use out there, fighting among your soldiers." Ben could sense her displeasure as soon as the last few words leaped form his tongue to her ears, and he instantly regretted it.

"You sound like Poe." Rey said bitterly, refusing to acknowledge his idea. If anything, at least she knew the two headstrong men would get along in time. Ben let out a sigh, the two had reached the large doors that marked the entrance to the capital.

"Well, Poe is right then." Ben said with grudgingly, which was another mistake on its own. Rey didn't even want respond this time, rolling her eyes instead she pressed her hands again the door attempting to pry it open.

"Help me with this door." Rey's tone was dry and she leaned harder against the door. Whether she liked it or not, she knew Ben had a point, but she wasn't going to turn her back on these people. Ben propped himself against the already heavy door, feeling its cool metal contrast with his warm hand. "Alright, on my count we push..." She paused for a moment, waiting for Ben to get fully prepared. "One, two three." The two pushed with their collective might, and still the door didn't budge. Rey grunted in displeasure, while Ben just took a step back reaching his arm out.

"Stand back." He ordered, and Rey glanced over at him. Curiosity brimming inside her head as she backed away from the door.

"Wh-" Before she could satisfy her curiousness, he felt a tug on the balance in the force and the door started to moan with the sounds of metal under stress. Rey cast a glance over at Ben, now fully aware of what he was doing. His eyes were closed, but his arm did not shake, as this effort was no exceedingly difficult for his power. The door seemed to groan and ache for a few moments more, before it was overcome by Ben's use of the force. The two pieces of the door flung off their hinges and were cast behind the two, sending a gust of wind that ruffled two straggling strands of Rey's hair. Ben let out a breath as if he was holding it.

"After you." He grinned. It felt good to flex his force muscles again, he was clearly his fathers' son as it was even more important for him to show off in front of Rey, who had already begun to walk inside.

* * *

It took a few moments for her eyes to adjust to the darkness inside the Capital building. The main hallway they entered was lit by lights that were made to imitate torches, Rey assumed this was a call back to the planets primal roots. Ben was no more than a few inches behind her, the two walked slowly down the dim hallway until they saw what seemed to be more slight towards the end of it.

"This reminds me a lot of a Star Destroyer, just less lit." Ben muttered, breaking the silence. Rey slowed up a bit so she could walk side by side to him, making for an easier conversation. Rey could sense his unease, but she also sensed guilt and on of that regret.

"Despite my best efforts, I managed to find myself on plenty of those." Rey quipped in, hoping to lighten up Ben's mood. She wasn't lying, after all. For a scavenger turned Resistance fighter she did find her way onto plenty of Star Destroyers, thanks partly in turn to him. Rey could sense his regret grow at her words, the opposite of what she had wanted to happen.

"They looked a lot like this, didn't they?" Ben reached his hand out to graze the walls of the hall they walked, as if he almost missed being on one. Rey nodded, looking over at him.

"I guess you could say that." She paused, thinking for a moment. Ben still had his hand against the walls. "I reminds me more of the crashed Imperial ones on Jakku, with all the sand erosion." Ben let out a snort, dropping his hand off the wall to let it rest at his side again.

"What was it like, being a scavenger?" The tone, and the question both caught Rey off guard. Ben, being a very important person ever since his birth, had no idea what life would be like being a nobody. He had some picture when he searched Rey's head on Star Killer Base, but it was forced and very different from a real conversation. He had been always longing for a real conversation with Rey, ever since their force connections the previous year. Rey could sense this, and she felt it too.

"Where to begin." Rey smirked to herself, making fun of how desolate her old life was on the desert world. "It was hard, at first, being so young and alone... but after awhile it just felt-" She briefly paused, searching for the right words while Ben waited patiently for her to finish. "It felt like normal life. Being a scavenger was all I had known, and everyone I knew was also a scavenger." Be frowned, feeling the loneliness creep into the aura of Rey's force. "I had always heard stories about life outside of Jakku, but I never wanted to leave. It felt like me, as if that life style made me who I am... and you already know I was waiting for my parents." Looking back, Rey realized how irrational her stay on Jakku was; but the long ache of wanting a family crept up inside her again, reminding her exactly why she had stayed. "I managed to find free time, you know?" Ben smiled, the warmth of the conversation heating up his chest and heart. "In between scavenging and keeping my house and speeder maintained, I had used an old Imperial flight simulator and practiced flying on that! Even though I thought would never leave..." Rey stopped, realizing how good it felt to talk about her life outside the force. _No one had ever asked me that question before... not even Finn! _Ben looked over at her, not knowing how to respond.

"That's where you learned how fly!" The lighthearted nature of his true voice almost made Rey tear up. For the longest time, it seemed, all she wanted was to have Ben Solo back. Now that he was here, it was something she needed to behold. "I always wondered where you got your talents." She smiled, it was a nice compliment.

"Ben." Rey tugged at his arm, signaling for him to stop walking. Her emotions were starting to get the better of her, and her eyes welled with steamy tears. Ben stopped on her command, looking down into her eyes. Flashbacks from the lift on Snoke's ship flooded his mind, but the feeling in the air was soaked with Rey's happiness. "I-I never got to thank you... for saving me-" She was cut off by Ben reaching forward to cup her mouth with his hand. Gazing into his eyes, they were warm and his smile beamed

"No, Rey." His smile grew "You, saved me." If Rey wasn't able to express her joy with words, no. The feelings she had, the tug deep inside as she reached around to put her arms around the neck was magnetic in nature. She had felt this before, on the floor on Exegol, and knew exactly what to do again. Closing her eyes, she slowly leaned up towards his face. Ben had removed his hand and by instinct he wrapped his free hand around her waist, pulling her closer. The force around them buzzed with energy and anticipation as the two leaned in for an embrace like no other. No words needed to be said, Rey was close enough now to feel his breath against her lips. It sent her body into an electric frenzy, the hair on her neck stood up like a flower in the spring, she was ready.

"Rey! Do you have a status on the Capital?" Poe's voice hissed through the com, shattering the tension and the moment. Rey's eyes shot open, her face was centimeters away from Ben's, the moment was ruined. Every fiber of her being wanted to stay locked together with Ben, but she reluctantly pulled away to answer the coms.

"We have it secured, what should we do with the civilians?" Rey's voice was scratchy, irritated, and Ben could tell. If anything, he wanted the kiss more. Ben had _always _wanted to kiss her. He just knew it would never happen, until it did. There was a brief pause, before Poe came back online.

"We have cleared the skies pretty good." Rey didn't expect it to be over so quickly, it was almost suspicious. "We only have the two Destroyers to take care of now, it would be safe to bring the, outside and signal for an extraction!" Ion cannon fire signaled Poe was done speaking, it seemed the day was all but won. Ben however, seemed to tense up.

"Sounds good, Black Leader." Rey clicked off the coms, not wanting another interruption again. Turning to Ben, she gave him a glance before brushing herself off and continuing their walk down the hall. Ben followed stiffly, something was wrong. "Are you alright?" Her voice was soothing, and Ben didn't want to frighten her.

"Yes, just puzzled. The First Order only retreats by direct order, if the Destroyers aren't leaving..." He trailed off, he didn't know for a fact they weren't already gone. "Doesn't matter, they are most likely already gone." Rey nodded, agreeing with what he said and the pair kept walking.

Moments later, they had reached what appeared to be a set of doors leading to a congressional hall, most likely where the people where seeking shelter from the attack. Rey was the first to approach the door, it was a huge structure made entirely from wood. She attempted to open it with Ben not far behind, and the door did not budge.

"I can feel their presence." Rey said, taking a deep breath and turning to face Ben. "They are afraid." She added, looking back at the large door. Ben walked up next to her. Using the force again to slowly push the mammoth of a door open. It creaked and groaned before coming to its resting position wide open. Rey smiled at the sight, hundreds of all kinds of life forms huddles together, all of their eyes on her and Ben. Their stares burned through her, some of the gazes looked relieved others looked petrified.

"I'll let you do the talking." Ben whispered to her, as he took a step into the congressional hall. In the same instant Ben's foot landed on the floor, half of the room gasped and jumped back. Noticing this, Ben put his hands up and stopped approaching, it was Rey's turn to shine.

"We are with the Resistance!" She called into the crowd, stepping up next to Ben, casting glances around the room. Murmuring in different languages broke out while she paused. "We have orders to evacuate you to a safer nearby location." Again, murmuring broke out and Ben looked over at Rey. She was so calm, a born leader it seemed.

"How can we trust ye?" An elderly male voice stood above the rest from the sea of voices, Rey's eyes softened at the question, as to where Ben almost took offense.

"You just have too, stay here and you're still in danger." She looked around at the group again, many of them were to frighten to question their rescue attempt. This was a good thing. "We have transport ships waiting outside for you, come along now!" Rey motioned with her hand, turning her back to the group, already starting her walk out. Ben folded his arms, nodding his approval as many of the civilians quickly followed the Jedi's orders.

"You'll be safe once we get you onto the transporters." Ben added before he too turned, followed by the thunderous sounds of many feet clamoring their way out of the hall.

* * *

As the first outside, Rey had noticed the Resistance had already landed about four transports and had set up defensive positions around the lawn. After what Ben had told her, she searched they sky for a Destroyer, and found only one. It was further away, but its bow was facing the city. _How odd_ she thought briefly before turning to greet Ben and the herd of civilians behind him. Upon seeing this, five Officers came up to help escort the many people onto the ships. Rey nodded to Ben, sensing their job was complete she began to walk over to a small patch of grass to stand vigil over the process.

"Some of them didn't come with us." Ben muttered once he was beside Rey. "I don't understand why, maybe it was me." Rey cast him a look of disbelief, almost laughing at the absurdity of his statement.

"Nonsense Ben!" She gazed out to the groups of people behind loaded up. "I remember how unwilling I was to leave Jakku, it was my home, and it wasn't even a nice place!" Ben snorted at her last bit, turning his head to face her.

"I find Jakku to be a great place, especially in the summers!" Rey shook her head, let out a small bit of laughter whilst doing so. Ben loved her laugh, it was the most precious thing he had ever heard.

"Yea, you're right." Rey fought sarcasm with sarcasm, adding to his joke about her home world. Rey bit her lip, thinking hard for a moment, crossing her arms. "Ah!" She winced, feeling the fiery pain from her side ignite again. Ben quickly put an arm on her shoulder, sensing her pain.

"Rey, we need to get you to a doctor." He voice was stern, eerily familiar with that of Kylo Ren's, but Rey shook off the pain and kept her arms at her side, gazing back out as the first transporter took off.

"I'm fine, I'll visit a doc when we get back to Ajan Kloss." Ben nodded sodomy, seeing Rey in pain had always made him uneasy. The pair stood in silence for a good minute or two, only the sounds of talking and footsteps broke the silence. The occasional blaster fire did sometimes split the tranquility, but was quickly drown out by the noise the transport engines caused. The breeze caused by those engines blew both Ben's and Rey's hair in a calm and relaxing pattern. Rey felt good, despite her side pain, about what had happened here today. It embodied what it had meant for her to be a Jedi, what it had meant to be her. Their thoughts were broken up by the unmistakable sound of the Falcon coming in for a landing behind them. Ben turned to face Rey, who was already facing the landing freighter.

"Time to go, if you want too." Ben said, taking a few steps forward ahead of Rey. Who glanced back at the much smaller group of civilians waiting to be taken to the safe zone. She nodded and followed him towards the already deployed loading ramp of the Falcon. Walking up the steps, Ben was still surprised Chewie had excepted him so quickly, even though he had known the Wookie since birth.

Once inside, Chewie was ready to great them, giving them a welcoming call. Rey smiled at her friend, while Ben planted himself on a seat. Rey winced slightly as she made her way to the Captains seat, she was clearly in discomfort and Chewie took to notice this. He called over to her, where Rey flashed another smile.

"I'm fine, thank you- lets get out of here." Chewie didn't argue with that, and nether did Ben. He was still excited about her discovery from earlier, and he sat in the corner a smile plastered on his face. The two pilots flipped a few switched and the Falcon took off, hovering at first before speeding its was towards the sky. Looking down, Rey grew saddened by the mass amounts of destruction below her. The city was destroyed, buildings were crumbled and debris littered the streets. Rey sighed, knowing scavengers would soon arrive to the city to feast on the ruins of First Order and Resistance ships.

Clouds zoomed by, a sight that new got old for Rey. Chewie looked over at her, asking her if she was ready for the jump to hyperspace. Rey nodded back, reaching out and grabbing the lever to accelerate back too Ajan Kloss. Now more then ever, after seeing the smoldering city, did she want to go home.

The blue sky gave way to black and the stars stretched out like spaghetti, the world around them rushed and they were gone; heading home, for now.

* * *

**There we are, finally done. **

**I apologize for not letting you know I would be out of town, so here is an extra long chapter to make up for the time lost. **

**Today, was a sad day.**

**We lost a legend, Kobe Bryant, in a tragic accident.**

**If things couldn't get worse; his thirteen year-old daughter was also on board the helicopter, she too, died. **

**May their souls rest in peace. **

**Again, I love the responses you guys share. I keeps me motivated and help me improve this story. **

**I may even start a new one on the side, who know.**

**Remember, Review and follow!**

**Until next time,**

**-London. **


	7. The Apology

**Decided to get right to work on this one, since I had taken such a long break on the previous chapter. **

**I hope you liked it, because I worked really hard to get it out last Sunday, it turned out longer then I had expected, so that is why.**

**Good news, there will be no more fighting scenes like the last three! Most of the content from here on out will be normal life, coping, self discovery, feelings and much, much more. **

**This is where it really becomes a Reylo, in my opinion- but you'll have to decide for yourselves.**

**I'm still on the fence about making a new story. I fear that if my new idea takes off, I will lose passion for this story. Since this one has a largish following for a FanFic I would feel ashamed to stop it before it is over.**

**Of course, if you would want to see the new idea, I might add a sneak peak or snippet from it in the coming chapters if you so desire.**

**Leave a review if you want another story, if you don't I'll just wait until this one is over to start. **

**Anyways, this is on pace to be my most acclaimed project yet. If my math is right, about 5 more chapters and it will be! That will be cause for celebration; your gift? Haha, wait to find out...**

**I know, you don't care.**

**On with the story,**

**-London**

* * *

It had been three days, wait, no. It had been four days since the battle on the mining planet, and during that time Rey heard nothing from Finn. In fact, she hadn't personally seen him since she forced tricked him into leaving her alone, and her guilt was eating up her insides. It was great, having Ben Solo finally around and free to be the version of himself so little had seen, but she couldn't help to feel as if she abandoned her oldest friend in the process. Sighing, she turned in her hammock. It was a chilly night, so she was curled up in multiple blankets. Aside from mediation, this was one of the few moments Rey could think in peace.

"BB-8, what do you think?" She called over the droid, who sat in the corner of her hut on low power mode. Rey was tired of debating with herself, she needed someone to talk too since Ben was with Poe, discussing whether or not he should stand trial. As she had suspected, Poe and Ben had hit it off, so the thought of a Ben Solo trial was not at the forefront of her mind. BB slowly hummed back to operational power levels, beeping his confusion to Rey's question.

"About Finn, buddy not about if dinner was good!" She smiled, he was such a good droid. Part of her wondered if he could sense her confliction, like she did with Ben. BB beeped his reply again, rolling across the floor to get beside the hammock where she lay.

"I know, he seems upset- that is my fault." Rey rolled over, looking down at the droid. His white paint stuck out in the dark of her hut. The time was just after midnight, but Rey didn't bother to check her clock. BB beeped his approval, he had already seen Finn yesterday

"Thanks for that." Rey felt her stomach sink as he confirmed that Finn was, and still is, angry with her. Rey would have to agree with him, Finn had every right to be upset with her. _Serves me right, I should have been more honest. _BB beeped something else, which made Rey's head shoot up.

"He is what?" She shook her head, in disbelief. BB confirmed what he had just said, beeping a few more times to explain the situation. Rey sat up, groggy from her attempt at sleep. BB rolled back to give her a place to put her feet, using her hands to grip the side of the hammock, propping herself up.

"Poe is allowing him to do this?" Her face was focused on the droid, her eyes becoming more adjusted to the lighting of her hut. BB nodded, before beeping again to answer her question. Rey was in her usual white undershirt and grey three quarter pants, shaking her head she stood up.

"I don't believe that." She muttered, walking over to the door where she had left her boots. BB rolled over to her, beeping to ask her a question and to inform her that he was telling the truth. Once Rey had grabbed the boots, she knelt down to be at eye level with BB, patting his head.

"Thank you for being honest, buddy." She rose back onto her feet, placing her feet into the boots one foot at a time. BB beeped again, his head tilting up to look at her. "I am going to see him." Rey replied, taking dark grey poncho off the hook, wrapping it around her and buttoning it up so it covered her top half. BB rolled back over to his corner to return to low power mode, beeping his goodnight to the Jedi as she opened the door.

"Goodnight to you too." Rey flashed him a smile before stepping out into the cool, damp Ajan Kloss night. Songs birds, insects and other creatures filled the night with a colorful and erratic pattern of sounds. Rey took a breath, gazing down upon the sleeping Resistance only a few lights were still on below her. A pilot worked on his X-wing, a group of fighters were around a campfire, the bar was still open, two people dashed off into woods hand in hand. Rey snorted, amused, watching the two love birds frolic out of sight. _I wish I had an experience like that... _she thought sheepishly. Taking a deep breath, she could feel every feeling on the base: anger, happiness, sadness, lust, longing, conflict and resolution. _People will think I'm odd, just standing here, feeling stuff _Rey chuckled to herself, beginning her descent towards the main barracks. _Feeling stuff? Is that what I'm going to call it now! _Shaking her head, she nearly slipped on a mossy root that was sticking out of the dirt, waiting to claim its first victim.

"Whoa." Regaining her balance, Rey continued her walk down. On the way, she realized that she can feel everyone else's feelings, why can't she feel her own? _I know what I like, who I am and what I want..._ she kicked a pebble and it rolled off into the brush on the side of the path. _I want to apologize to Finn, and get my friend back. _Rey found that arguing with ones self was the hardest argument to win. _But you want something, more. _She hesitated at her own thoughts, standing at the base of the hill now. _Preposterous! Rey, you have everything you need, great friends and a family. Jedi can't be avaricious! _Continuing to walk forward, she blocked out anymore unreasonable thoughts, except one. She quickly shoot her head, freeing herself of _that_ kind of thought_. _

"You're stupid, Rey." She cursed to herself, looking down at her feet. Unaware of the presence of Poe Dameron walking up to her. His discussion with Ben was over, and had allowed him to stay in the falcon, instead of Rey's hut. Poe smiled, Rey was an odd one. Many times had he caught her talking to herself, or _someone _the year they had spent on Ajan Kloss. Finn had said it was just Force stuff, but Poe had always suspected she was keeping something from them. One time, he recalled clearly, was a winter day in the jungle. Poe had been looking for BB-8 when he came across Rey, sitting in the forest, angrily taking about how 'You should have left with me' and 'Oi! Don't say that'. He recalled her blush, stand up and whisper in a low voice 'I don't care if it is true, stop ogling me!'. Content on never bringing it up again, Poe had almost forgotten about it until now.

"What are you doing out so late?" The ace's voice startled Rey, who looked up at him with wide eyes. She had nothing to hide, and was sure Finn had told him about how rude she was. Why was she nervous?

"I'm going to see a friend." Rey replied with a level headed tone, still nervous for whatever reason. The distance they stood at was awkward, kind of far but any closer would be too close. Poe raised his eyebrows, giving Rey a look. He was shameless to a fault, but it only added to his character.

"I get that, who is the lucky guy?" He crossed his arms, smiling at how she got angry. He loved annoying her, and at times she didn't mind. Rey opened her mouth to protest, but was cut off by Poe. "Is it one of my pilots?" There was a slight pause, Poe's eyes gleamed with mischief. Rey opened her mouth to rebuttal his idea, but was cut off again. "Or is it that smoldering hunk of a man-"

"Neither, I'm not here for any of those reasons." It was Rey's turn to cut him off, Poe smiled at her take charge attitude. She sighed, continuing her explanation. "I'm looking for Finn, have you seen him?" She gazed up at him, concern in her eyes. Upon hearing his name, Poe knew what this was about. His expression tightened and he pointed towards the bar.

"I saw him earlier in there, but he might have gone to his quarters by now." He walked over to Rey, who's eyes tracked him like a honing missile, and placed a hand on her shoulders. Rey looked over and up to look at him, his face was grim. "He told me he wanted to leave, if you could try to convince him to stay, please." She had forgotten, that Finn and Poe were like brothers. Realizing now that her actions not only hurt her friendship with the ex storm trooper, that it also hurt Poe too. Fighting back tears, she nodded.

"That was what I am on my way to do." Poe took his hand off her solid shoulder, returning it to his side. She looked away, feeling her sadness grow, she did not want Poe to see her cry.

"I'll see you later then, Rey." Poe nodded affirmatively before walking away from her. He had guessed she didn't want him around, after all, they hadn't really shared intimate stories. Now was not the time to start, she had her own business to take care of. Maybe they could share a drink or two some other time.

"Bye." Rey called back, sounding dull. She hadn't moved yet until his footsteps were no longer audible. Wiping her a tear away from her cheek, she continued her walk to find Finn. Despite Poe's tip, she had sensed he was not at the bar. To avoid any delays, she skipped over that stop and went straight to where she knew Finn's quarters were.

The base on Ajan Kloss was similar to the one on D'qar. Both used the natural features of the planet to house the rebellion, only this time, Ajan Kloss had a lot more tree cover. The barracks were craved out of the hills, so were the hangers and all of the other vital parts to a military base. Rey had to walk across the runway, past the medical bay and around a half destroyed X-Wing (that for some reason had been parked in the middle of the runway) before she could even step foot into the main living areas. Since the Resistance wasn't that large, a lot of the soldiers had a fair amount of living space. The higher rank you were, the more you got from that as well.

Rey took a step inside, the hallway was still lit up, but almost every door was shut. She had only been inside this place a few times before, and she felt awkward just being there. Slowly, she walked down the long hall, counting off the numbers on the passing doors. She knew Finn's number was seventy three, but vaguely remembered where the room actually was. Her footsteps seemed to be amplified due to the time of night, making her feel self conscious.

"Sixty one... sixty three..." Rey counted each passing door, drawing nearer and nearer to her final destination. She was nervous, as she approached door seventy three. Once she had reached it, Rey stood outside of the door, waiting. She new the basis of what she was going to say, how much she was sorry. How she missed him, and how she regret her actions. _He owes me an apology too, _she thought for a moment, remembering how he had called her by her families name.

Rey hadn't even touched the door when it swung open, making her jump slightly. Finn stood in front of her, his face one of sadness and discomfort. It pained her too see it.

"Hey, Rey." Finn said, his voice like sandpaper. He stepped aside allowing her to walk in, which she did. Awkwardly at first, taking in the sights of his quarters. It smelled, and felt cozy. Reaching out with the force, Rey felt an aura of peace, tranquility and... conflict, fear and lastly anger. _I couldn't have caused all this, could I? _Rey took a seat in a comfy looking arm chair, once she sat, it confirmed it was comfy. Finn turned to look at her, shutting the door and slowly walking over to sit on his bed.

"Finn, I needed to talk to you-" Rey began, but was cut off by Finn politely silencing her. Closing her mouth, Rey gazed at him with wide eyes, awaiting what her friend had to say next. Finn rubbed his knee for a moment, then spoke.

"I'm sorry, Rey. For what I said, how I acted... I was being selfish." He almost sounded choked up, which was odd for Finn. Rey didn't smile at first, she almost felt guilty that he felt sorry and not her, after all it was her that had all the explaining to do. "I should have taken Ky-" Rey winced "Ben Solo coming home better. I should have trusted you, I should have told you..." His voice trailed off, and his head dropped to inspect the floor. Rey tilted her head, something else was bothering him.

"It is okay, Finn, you do not need to be sorry." Rey rubbed her arm, still feeling a dull pain on her side from the battle a few days prior. "I should have confided in you first, about Ben. I should have told you it was okay, explained everything..." Rey debated in her mind _Should I tell him about the Force bond? _Maybe not now, but she promised she would. "I know how it must've made you feel; and I'm so, so sorry." Finn picked his head up to look at her, excepting her apology with his soft gaze she had grown to love.

"In the sinking fields, remember how I was going to tell you something?" His gaze hardened to a more serious tone, and Rey started to panic. She had already spent a fair amount of time guessing what he wanted to say, coming to several conclusions. _Please don't say you love me, not like that- no, why would I be mad? I would have to turn him down, it would break his heart! Why would I reject him? He is a great man! Do I feel for another, yes. Of course I do, I always had. _In a moment of panic Rey's mind jumped from stone to stone. Afraid of what was going to come next, her back muscles grew stiff. _Don't make me say no..._

"Rey..." She prepared herself as if she was going to be shot by a blaster. _Here it comes... _"Rey, I'm force sensitive."

That was unexpected, at least to Rey it was. Reaching out with the force, she tried to find him, but she couldn't. _Odd... maybe he is having trouble allowing it in. _Either way, this was great news.

"Finn!" Rey's voice was light "This is great! Have you tried to lift rocks, read the Jedi text!?" Rey was enthusiastic about this discovery, sending her belly into a nesting ground for butterflies. Finn, however, looked up at her solemnly, giving off mixed signals to her. "Finn.." He shook his head, point to a small mound of stones in the corner.

"I-I can't... Rey. I've tried! For hours, even..." Rey felt his pain from across the room, triggering her sympathetic nature deeply rooted in her heart. She stands, walking over to be next to him, stepping on a book. Rey looked down, it was one of the Jedi text. _He must've taken it when I was not around. _Sitting next to him on the bed, she took his hand in hers.

"Why didn't you tell me, I could have helped you learn." He voice is soothing, like the coo of a dove. She used their connection to search him, to see if he had any potential to be a Jedi.

"I spoke to Maz, she knows the Force." Rey continued to search, finding nothing but a small tug. He looked up at her, his eyes teary "She said, that some people can feel the Force, but not use it." Rey ended the connection, choosing to believe his words.

"Maz isn't a Jedi..." Rey tried to comfort her friend, even though she knew Maz was right. She had been the one to know Rey had her power before Rey even knew. Finn shook his head, avoiding eye contact.

"Rey, she's like- a thousand years old." He wiped a tear off his cheek. "She told me herself, that 'I can feel the Force, just not use it.'" Rey patted his back, still holding onto his hand. Feelings of failure seeped into her mind as the connection she didn't feel at first sparked to life. "I am a failure to the Resistance, too much pressure is on you- and now Ben. If I could have used the Force like a Jedi, like you... I could have helped so many more people." Finn finished with a sob.

"You're not a failure, Finn. Not to me." As she spoke her words Rey saw the parallels between what she just said and what Ben, Kylo Ren, had said to her many of times on Force bond talks and in person after defeating Snoke. Finn smiled a bit, but still the sadness radiated off his body.

"How can I feel it, but not be able to use it?" Finn asked, momentarily looking at Rey as if she knew the answer. However, she had no idea how to answer that. She had only been training for a year, many things were still unknown to her. Then she remembered something she had read in one of Luke's books.

"The ability to use the Force, often runs in families." _Rey_ _Palpatine_ she thought bitterly "In one of the text, it spoke of a Jedi Church, open to everyone. Not just Force Users." Finn picked his head up, interested. "Maybe, somewhere along the line, your grandparents or even great-grandparents worshiped there." Finn, much like Rey (Before she learned her lineage) had no idea who his real parents were.

"Do you think, this knowledge could have been passed on through genetics?" This was sort of a dumb question, but Rey didn't mind. She was here to comfort her friend, who she had nearly thought she lost.

"Yes! Silly, how else can you explain me? Or Ben Solo? Or even Luke and Leia?" She gave him a smile for reassurance. Finn's eyes sparkled, Rey was working her magic. Her ability to make others feel better was second to none in the entire Resistance. Finn stood up in a flash, almost knocking Rey into the bed, she giggled.

"Rey! I need to find where I come from, I need too!" He urgently went over to a closet, grabbing a bag as Rey leaned up on his bed. She smiled, feeling the same energy she had felt in him before all this mess had happened. Smiling she stood up too, making her way towards the exit.

"If you need any help, you know how to contact me." Rey smiled, turning to go. Finn still dashing around behind her, picking up random items to stuff into his bag, realizing Rey was leaving, he ran up to her.

"Thank you." Finn said, grabbing Rey by the shoulder, spinning her around and embracing her with a hug. As if Rey's smile couldn't get any bigger, it now stretched from ear to ear. She let her chin rest on her shoulder, like the many times they had hugged before. _I got my brother back. _She thought to herself, entrapped in the long embrace.

"I have to go now, Finn. I have some matters to attend with." Finn acknowledged, breaking the hug and allowing her to leave. Waving a last goodbye before closing the door behind her.

Now in the quiet confines of the hall, Rey took a deep breath, feeling a weight get lifted off her chest. Helping Finn, and making amends, was something she had been worried about for days. With that out of the way, she had time to focus on _her _and what she needed.

"What do I need?" She spoke aloud to herself, blocking out the surroundings as she walked. Life, for her, had become very clear as of the past few days. Actually, it always had been. For the vast majority of her life, she focused on surviving Jakku's harsh environment. Barely getting enough to eat, finding parts, fighting off other scavengers, and waiting for her parents. Life was very cut and dry back then, Rey rarely had any time to herself. When she did find free time on that desolate desert planet, she spent it selling extra parts or enjoying a recovered Imperial flight simulator. Thinking hard, Rey had developed a sense of herself while barely even thinking about it. The only time she recalled a real sense self discovery was at night as a hormonal teenager stuck in her AT-AT, alone. Rey snorted laughingly at her own past, stepping back out into the fresh air of the runway. After she had been flung into this conflict, her new purpose was to help the fight against the First Order. _Well that quickly changed_, she thought to herself. After defeating Kylo Ren on Starkiller base, her main focus was all about Luke and her training to become a Jedi. That faded for a moment, as she recalled fighting Luke because she thought Kylo could turn. She was wrong that day, but right in the long run.

Rey hurried past the bar, not wanting to get tangled up with drunken soldiers. _Alight, back to you. _She nearly whispered that aloud, slowing down once she neared hangar B. After return to save the Resistance on Krait, her entire year was spent training with Leia, reading ancient text and sometimes going on missions to fight. Realizing it now, she barely had anytime to herself. _Sheesh__, _she snickered making her way up the hill, _I was pretty damn devoted. _

Being careful this time to avoid any evil roots, attempting a sinister assassination, she made her way back to her hut. _I had no time for me, no indulgence... I guess it was against the Jedi code. But why must they be so uptight? _Rey had made it to the top, using the Force to open her door. _No time for satisfaction, no time for fun or play. _Sadly, she remembered they were in a war.

_"_It is important not to loose one's self!" She whispered to herself, unbuttoning her poncho, placing it on the hook. BB was deep in low power mode, but he had an acute audio chip, so Rey took extra caution in being quite. Slipping her boots off, she sat down on her bed. Sighing, she realized she was much hotter then before. Standing up, Rey slide off her pants so she was just in her undershirt and delicates.

Laying down, she pulled her blanket up to around her belly button. _This is comfortable... odd, I didn't remember it feeling this good! _She smirked none the less, lifting her head up to adjust her pillow. Everything felt better, but she didn't feel tired, she felt _electric... hmmm_ Rey thought for a moment, gazing out a small window to see the moon. It cast a pale light onto her face, illuminating parts of her room. Glancing over, she saw that Ben's clothes where lit up by the moonlight. Rey's thoughts began to drift, imagining him, shirtless again.. taking off his clothes slowly. Rey bit her lip, blushing at her own self.

"Stop it!" She hissed, feeling the electric feeling grow in her lower stomach and between her thighs. _Wait..._ Her eyes sparkled for a brief moment and a had drifted below the covers, light caressing her thigh. "Maybe _this _is what I need..." She breathed those words, her voice low and husky. _Let your mind wander Rey... _she instructed herself, glancing back over to Ben's garments. Her hand moved from her thigh to her stomach, increasing the electric feeling until it almost was throbbing between her legs.

Her face and chest were now flushed, looking down at her own hand on her stomach, she slowly lowered it... lower, and lower...

Closing her eyes, she leaned her head back, letting herself be ruled by the sensations. Pursing her eye brows, she allowed her desires to manifest, and felt her tension release with each hand motion. Drifting off into the pleasure world she had experienced so few times...

"Mm-" Her eyes shot open, determined to stay quite, she lifted her free hand, placing it into her mouth, muffling her sounds of enjoyment. Now, she fully allowed herself to drift. Opening her eyes again, she couldn't help but rotate her hips; instinct, she assumed. _No more thoughts, Rey! Let go..._

Listening to her own commands, she floated away into a realm of satisfaction and ecstasy.

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**I want to keep this T, so I ended that right there. **

**I really wanted to write more, but it is late and yea, I like being a tease.**

**As of now, I'm sitting at 49 reviews. Lets get this story to 55, and maybe next time I'll consider continuing Rey's self adventure. **

**Follows and Favorites are also much appreciated, but I love reading our guy's thoughts. It makes my day!**

**Until next time, which should be about a week from now...**

**-London**


	8. The Gift

**With loads of free time on my hands, I got right back to work making this chapter! I am starting to like this Fic more when I add characters to character interaction, I am just worried I'll screw up how the characters act. **

**Anyways; last chapter was fun, but had no Ben in it. **

**This chapter will have some Solo in it, so you'll see.**

**Still questioning myself on exactly how certain ideas I've had for later in the story will come out, so expect some filler chapters. **

**I'll leave you to guess which ones are fillers, because why not. **

**Anyways, here is the next chapter**

**-London.**

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Rey awoke,, blinking her eyes open slowly. Her sleep last night was great, deep and refreshing. She lay on her side in her hammock, blanket up to her neck. _I must've moved in my sleep _she inquires. Yawning, and sits up. The air was already heating up from the sun, which was casting a warm glow into her hut. Looking around, Rey felt less tense then she had nights before. Smirking, she remembered why. BB-8 had already gone, the droid was an early riser. Normally, Rey was too but she slept extra sound last night. Honestly she needed the bonus rest.

Rey stood up, feeling the morning sunlight bathe her exposed legs with a comforting warmth. She needed to put pants on, despite the night feeling, she couldn't just walk around half naked. She stretched her back and arms, feeling looser then usual, her back even cracked slightly. Looking down, she found the pair from last night and pulled them up.

After a moment of Rey just taking in the sun, she made her way over towards her closet and chests. There, she would find the rest of her outfit for the day. Getting to her closet, she picked up her belt and fashioned it to her waist, a snug fit that had become a part of her since her days on Jakku. Opening her closet, she all her array of tops and bottoms. Most ranged from grey to white, a few Red's and of course her black overcoat in case she had to go somewhere cold.

Rey picked up a nice stone colored top, very similar to the one she wore to Arch-To. That one was still in her closet, but she rarely wore it. Casting a glance to the corner of the wooden structure, Rey saw her white Jedi clothes. Sighing, she pushed the other basic clothes out of the way to look at it. The white had been cleaned since her fight on Exegol, thankfully. She ran her head down the silky outer layers sending memories flooding through her. _Should I ever wear that again? _She asked herself, glancing at the clothes in her hand. _It wouldn't be disrespectful, would it? Maybe... _she thought before putting on her top with ease. The fit was snug, but not constricting, which Rey liked.

Now fully dressed, Rey turned to head out. Before she could take one step, the half completed light saber on her desk caught her eye. _How could I have forgotten about that! _She shook her head, _I'll complete you later. _She spoke to herself. Once she had gotten to her door, she sensed something on the other side that was not there before. Cautiously, she opened the door. To her surprise, there was a box with a bow and a letter on it. Smiling, she bent over to pick it up.

"Who brought you here?" She asked the box, not actually wanting a response. Checking the letter, she walked back inside and sat at her table, reading the letter. _"From Poe: Thanks Rey, for convincing Finn to stay around. I know we don't always see eye to eye, but that doesn't matter. I can't understate your importance to our cause, and to me. Here is a small gift I figured you'd appreciate, don't use it all at once. I don't want to be held accountable for that! - Sincerely, Poe Dameron." _Rey, now very intrigued, opened the small black box. Inside she saw a large bottle filled with a brownish, almost sand colored liquid. She picked up the bottle, reading aloud the label.

"Ergesh Rum... 40 proof?" Rey didn't know what that meant, but she did know what Rum was. Smirking, she placed the bottle back into its box, folding the letter neatly and placing it on the table. "Of course, Poe would buy me alcohol." Laughing some more, she stood up shaking her head. Once she had stepped outside, the humidity in the air was quite obvious. Birds chipped and sang their songs far above Rey's head, she needed a shower, but her stomach growled in protest. Food was needed first, so to the mess hall she went, secretly hoping to find Ben there. She felt her cheeks grow hot, imaging him waiting for her with his smile. O_h stop it! You're acting like a teenage girl! _Only being 20, was it really above her to act this way? Shaking her head Rey started down the well trotted path towards the mess hall, pushing out any thoughts except for what she was going to have for breakfast.

The runway was busy with Resistance members, many of whom were just arriving. After their large victory on Exegol, many were joining the fight. Booths were set up, allowing each new member to register their name and go through extensive background checks. Rey was glad more people were joining, but for others it was a sign of cowardice. The fight was all but over now, only a few strongholds of the First Order remained. Some of the older fighters saw the newer ones as bandwagons, people who were to afraid to help the cause before, and let their friends die. Rey could see both sides of the argument, but was just glad people had shown up.

Continuing her walk to the mess hall, she brushed past many of the people crowding the tarmac. From the looks of the sky, even at this time in the morning, it looked to be a pleasant day. It rains a lot on Ajan Kloss, especially in the jungle which happens to be where their base is located. The mess hall was just past hangar A, which was past hangar B where Rey's hut was. Not a far walk by any standards, but the unusually large crowd slowed things down for her.

Once at the mess hall, Rey was greeted by fellow fighters. "Hey Rey." and "Morning Rey!" said a few who were leaving as she entered. She politely smiled a reply, not wanting to speak, saving her voice for who she hoped was there. The mess hall was a large room with tall ceilings, lights hung from those. Tables sat in the middle with droids buzzing around them, it wasn't too busy no, but at times Rey had seen it packed to the brim.

Before she could even enter the line to get her food, Rey felt the force tug her attention towards a table in the far corner. Gazing that way, she saw Ben. Sitting alone, eating the rations that were provided to him. _Poor Ben... _She thought with a frown, imagining his awkwardness at being around all the Resistance. Even if it was his second day attempting to bond in the mess hall, she could feel his apprehension. _He won't be alone much longer _she imagined, turning her frown into a smile as Rey scooted into the line for breakfast. She wondered if Ben had felt her presence, she could feel his aura from far ranges if she focused.

"Move it lady." The gruff voice split her thoughts as she was pushed from behind. In her focus, she had stopped walking.

"My bad, sorry." Rey politely replied, scurrying forward to move up the line. Feeling embarrassed, she felt her cheeks grow hot, and not for good reasons. _Must have been someone new, for them not to know my name. _The rest of the time in line Rey moved up whenever the line did, only waiting abut five minutes before it was her turn to order. Stepping up to the buffet, the line worker gave her a smile.

"What will it be today, Rey?" His voice was gruff, like a stereotypical soldier would. However, Rey knew this man, and knew he was not as his tattooed appearance may suggest. Sai was a very gentle man, he loved animals and played cards every night with the wounded fighters to cheer them up. Even making special meals for the severely injured few, which to some was a waste of materials, but Rey saw it as sweet.

"I'll have the beans, with my favorite green veggies and toast please." Rey gave a smile, watching as Sai nodded and used a few spoons to scoop up the requested choices. The vegetables reminded her a the rations on Jakku, but far better tasting. They landed on her plate, still steaming from the container they were just in. Finn often would make fun of her for not "treating herself" during her meals. Rey ate very healthy almost to a fault. On Jakku, food was not to be enjoyed but needed for survival. Now with decent food almost everyday, Rey tried not to loose sight of her roots. And besides, Jedi needed to be in tip top condition, so eating healthy was important to her training.

Sai passed her plate down the line, where it was stopped by an unfamiliar man. He was just a boy, by the looks of it, maybe seventeen. He was skinny, maybe forty pounds soaking wet. New to the Resistance, clearly, but Rey wasn't going to hold that against him. "What would you like to drink?" The boy asked, gazing at Rey with wide eyes.

"What kind of tea are in stock today?" She asked, making eye contact with the newbie. Tea was Rey's favorite drink besides water, ever since she had tried it on Ahch-To. The boy gave an awkward smile, stuttering on his own words while his pupils grew in diameter.

"We-we have uhhh herbal- er honey, uhh green... red?" Rey couldn't help but giggle, she didn't know how to react. Flattered? Somewhat. Happy? Maybe, she just wanted her tea. She paused her reply for a moment for him to gather his thoughts.

"Green, please and thank you." Rey asked politely, watching as he turned redder than Snoke's Throne Room. She let out a smile, the boy nervously poured a cup of hot tea for the young Jedi. He was clearly smitten.

"The-there you go m'lady." He voice was shaky, oh how adorable it was. Rey took the cup from him as he reached over the glass to hand it to her. Their hand touched for a meer nanosecond, but the boy looked like he had seen stars.

'Thank you." She almost felt bad, turning to leave with the tray and tea in hand, that he would never be able to be with her. At least, the way she saw things now it was impossible. She could almost feel his hot stare on her back as she marched towards Ben's lonely table. Around half way there, she noticed his head pick up from staring at his food. _Ahh, now he sense me _giving a warm smile Rey picked up her pace like a giddy middle-schooler about to sit with her friends.

"Ben! How are you this morning?" Rey tilted her head ever-so-slightly downwards, attempting to make her eyes seem around welcoming. She sat down with a thump, not taking her eyes off him just yet. Ben sat up straight and cleared his throat, noticing how she sat. It was unusual for her to sit like that, normally she had great posture.

"I'm good Rey, what about you? Sore?" Ben asked nicely, stuffing his face full of cornbread. _Cornbread? _Rey thought, imaging the terrifying menace that was Kylo Ren. _The former Supreme Leader, loves cornbread! _It was strange having funny thoughts about Ren, after all the monstrosities he had done. She couldn't hold in her laughter. "What?" Ben asked, swallowing his food. Giving Rey an odd look, reaching for his milk.

"Nothing." She laughed again. "I'm starving, not sore." Rey picked up her spoon and lifted some beans onto the toast, plopping some into her mouth frantically. Closing her eyes at the taste, everyday it got better and better compared to Jakku rations. Quickly, she placed more beans on the remaining toast. Repeating the process until all the toast and beans were gone. Ben stared, his eyes wide on the verge of laughter. "What?" Rey used a napkin to wipe her mouth, Ben shook his head.

"You eat like a starving man!" He picked up a bite of egg with his fork, watching as Rey crossed her arms. This was not the first time she had heard that, in fact, Poe would say it almost every time they ate together. Being used to it now, she found it amusing that Ben also says that about how she eats.

"It's in my nature." Rey replied, taking a sip of her tea. It was quite good! Using a fork, she picked up some of the veggies, eyeing them up before plopping them into her mouth. Ben got jealous of the fork for a moment, quickly casting aside those thoughts however.

"That actually makes, a lot of sense." Ben realized, leaning forward to rest his arms on the table, watching Rey continue to eat. She finished her veggies in no time, eager to start a real conversation with Ben. During their force talks, she had learned about him. Who he was, why he did things, as well as the thing she would normally say. She also learned his thought process. One thing Rey hadn't learned was how his childhood was, but she worried about how he would react to such a question.

"I have a question, Ben." Rey announced when the last bit of veggies had cleared her throat. He picked his eyes up, ready to answer any question the young Jedi had to ask him. Excited about the prospect of sharing intimate details with another life form, especially _this _life form. "What was your time on the Falcon like? Do you remember any of it?" Ben was slightly taken aback by her question. Giving her a look, growing stiff. As he looked into her eyes, they were pure and warm. _She genuinely wants to know_, he thought. Searching his memory for the right spot to begin his story.

"I remember being forced to work on it." He said gruffly, not all of his memories are pleasant ones. Rey was shocked a little by his tone, thinking maybe she had asked the wrong question. Or if she should apologize and back off, but before she could, Ben continued. "You must know, that thing needs a tone of maintenance." His tone was better now, and relief washed over Rey. The last thing she wanted was for him to be upset at her. "I remember that it ha felt very large to me, when I was a boy. Didn't take long for me to grow into it." He laughed at his own joke, Rey giggled to. Ben was a very tall man, easily towering over many other people in the Resistance.

"Was Chewie around much?" Rey asked curiously, tilting her head while grabbing her cup of tea. Ben felt a smile creep onto his face, watching the steam from Rey's tea float up into her nose and around her cheeks. The way she carefully placed her lips around the edge of the cup. Getting lost in the scene before him, Ben almost forgetting the question.

"Yes. Uncle Chewie was around all the time. I liked him the most, Leia would've told you." Ben searched Rey's face, trying to gauge her emotions and intentions with this conversation. As much as he enjoyed opening up to her, the process of remembering still brought some pain. He didn't want to have too stop her from learning, but he didn't want to go any further right now in such a public space.

"Have you talked to him any?" Rey asked, inquiring more about his interactions with the Wookie. Ben was kind of relieved her new question was about right now and not the past. It was a lot easier to talk about, and he hoped Rey could sense his apprehension.

"No... I haven't." Rey looked in his eyes, reaching over the table to touch his hand that was neatly placed on the edge of his side. Ben watched her hand move across the table, eventually landing on top of his. The embrace sent a surge of connection running through the both of them, and now Rey could feel his emotions. _I should've laid off him _she thought with a sigh. Watch his eyes drift from her hand to her face. She guessed he knew she could feel his sadness.

"I'm sorry, Ben..." Not wanting to hear him say 'it wasn't her fault' which Rey knew he was going to say, she instead started a whole new conversation. Or at least a planned one. "I am going to take a bath. After that, around mid day I would like to take you for a walk." Rey saw Ben's eyes light up, and butterflies arose in her stomach. "If it is okay, I would like to show you my training spots." Ben quickly nodded, pulling his hand away from her hand, attempting to hide his excitement.

"I would be delighted!" He said standing up, grabbing his tray. Rey smiled up at him, placing her used napkin on her empty tray and finishing her tea in one last gulp.

"Meet me outside my home at midday then." She stood up as well, following Ben to where he had started to walk. The garbage was located by the exit, which Ben had learned pretty fast. Not wanting Rey to see him blush, he walked quickly ahead of her.

"I will be there." He replied, making a mental note to be fashionably late. It had always worked at all the First Order meetings, so it must work for Rey too, right?

"Good, I'll be seeing you." Rey said placing her trash into the garbage droid who would take it to the compactor. Ben had already done this with his, and he stood by waiting for her get rid of her leftovers. Once she had finished, she turned to him and started to move towards the exit. Ben followed.

"You will, are you taking-" He paused, glancing down at Rey who was looking down at her feet as they exited the mess hall. The temperature outside was rising, which Ben had assumed was normal for Ajan Kloss, as it was a lush world. He still wondered what Rey put in her hair to keep it so sleek. _Its probably so soft.. _He started to loose himself in his own thoughts about her hair, not even hearing Rey answer his incomplete question.

"Yes. It will give you time to arrange your own barracks, unless you've arranged something else with Poe." Rey kept looking at her feet, watching how she still slightly curved her ankle when she walked. It was a learned trait from the shifting sands on Jakku, it would keep her balanced. The odd feet positioning was no longer needed for day to day life, but old habits die fast.

"Oh, sorry I had asked if I could get my own quarters in the Falcon." Rey looked up at him, almost laughing as they walked side by side. Ben quickly looked away in hopes that Rey hadn't caught him staring at her hair. The buns she always did them up in were messy right now, as if she hadn't cleaned them after she slept. It was adorable, and Ben imagined it smelled like fresh dew on a large leaf in the early morning; crisp and sweet.

"That's nothing to be sorry about! It was your fathers ship so it only makes sense if-" Ben cut her off. She wasn't wring often but right now Rey was no where near the truth.

"The Falcon is yours, Rey." Ben gave a little smile, sensing the shock flow through the currents of the Force. He also sensed happiness come from her, which made his smile grow. Rey stopped walking, gazing up at him with excited eyes. Deep down she had always wanted the Falcon after learning about all of its rich history, but she never wanted to take it from Chewie. Rey even had her second room in the Falcon, which housed some of her clothes along with some of her books.

"Th-what.." She stumbled on her words, like the boy in the lunch line earlier, she had no idea to react. _Was this a gift? Wasn't it already hers kind of? What would Chewie think? I already live there when we go on missions- is it mine? _She took a moment to gather her thoughts. Exhaling a breathe, she began. "Thank you, I appreciate the gift." She touched his arm, reaching out while gazing into his eyes. Ben felt his cheeks grow hot at her touch

"Its what Leia would've wanted..." He felt his guilt rise up, but looking into Rey's eyes he pushed it down. "Han too.." He felt himself choke up a bit, watching as tears sort of welled up in the corners of Rey's eyes as well. Somehow, she smiled.

"Meet me in my hut at midday, got it?" She pulled her hand off his arm very slowly, almost as if she didn't want to let go. Everyday she was around him, she was drawn to him more. Even through the Force bonds it happened, but even more so now he was here and officially Ben Solo. He gazed down at her, sad that she was no longer touching him, but excited about the prospect of seeing her later that day.

"Of course, I won't be late." Going back on his idea from earlier, he was too excited not to be on time. Every time Ben was around her, the pull to the light called him, when he finally answered that call she had delivered him a fatal blow. Even then, Rey used her power for good and revived him. He wasn't even sure if she had sensed his switch to the light, which meant Rey revived who she thought was Kylo Ren. Ever since that moment, he never wanted to be apart from her.

"Good. I have to bathe now, goodbye!" Rey gave a cheery smile then dashed off, trotting quickly towards Hangar B where her hut was. Ben watched as she went noticing how she looked both ways to check for incoming ships, how she would lightly brush past people, saying excuse me even though she didn't need to. She was perfect.

For a very, very brief time, Ben got an idea. _I know where her secret spot to shower is, I could meet her there- wait no, that would be awkward... I could watch her there. I could hide! _He felt his heart beat faster and he clenched his fist, imagining hiding in the trees, peering down at Rey who washed her body in the water. Her smooth hands gliding over her petite frame... the water dripping down her chest onto her delightful breast.

_Nope. There it is... Kylo Ren. _Ben thought with a grimace, all the excitement left his body and his head drooped. That was something Kylo Ren would have done, not something Ben Solo would. _Dammit! _He cursed in his head, starting to walk towards the Falcon where his current room was. He had been wondering how long it would take for his dark side to show through, and there it was. Angrily he stormed off to his chambers, muttering and cursing himself all the way there. But one thought, managed to get through his barrier, and he wished it never had. For it gave him to many ideas.

_Will Rey ever show her dark side? _

* * *

**There it is, mostly a filler chapter, but it still contained some important details to watch out for in the coming chapters.**

**Speaking of upcoming chapters, here are the names of some of the next ones!**

_**The Walk (9)**_

_**The Drink (10)**_

_**The Mistake (11)**_

_**The Truth (12)**_

_**The Night (13)**_

_**The Escape (14)**_

_**The Star (15)**_

**And that is as far as I can see into the future, which should be around the middle-ish part of this story, with the climax happening around chapters 13-15 (At least, not for Rey)**

**Anyways, review! Lets try and get this to 60 before next chapter! All responses are welcome, even critical ones!**

**Sincerely**** yours,**

**London**


	9. The Walk

**Hey there! This will be the ninth chapter of my story! **

**Forgive me, but I am tempted to make a new one. There are things I want to write that I just can't add into this story. **

**Even if I did start another project, I would not stop making this one. I love this one! There are things I could write in here that I couldn't write in my new story, so I will probably just wait until this one is over. **

**This chapter is not a filler, but it should be much shorter then my four thousand average. **

**Its funny, though. That I am saying it will be shorter before I even write it.**

**Who knows really, it might just be average length. **

**Anyways, here is the chapter**

**\- London**

* * *

Rey lay in the water, gently floating on her back in a peaceful and very relaxing bliss. She felt her bones expand and her muscles unwind in the tension free water, which occasion splashed up onto her cheeks if she stroked her arm. The Klosslands were usually muggy, and rarely did temperatures drop below ten degrees Celsius even in winter. As Rey float, her mind drifted from thought to thought, not focusing on one particular thing. It was nice being free to float, naked and adrift, letting the water flow onto her. She had heard rumors Ancient Jedi found water tanks to be the best source of Meditation, but if Rey was being honest, she just liked the feeling. As the animals called overhead, Rey used her arms to stay afloat, feeling at inner peace. It was hard at times for her to come to grips with what she was: The Last Jedi, a Palpatine, a savior, Rey. Some of it was too much, and times to just float and come to peace with it all were priceless.

"Be with me..." She breathed, attempting to communicate to her Jedi ancestry. One of the reasons why Rey grew so bonded to Kylo Ren was the fact he understood her. No one else in the Resistance could, not even Finn. During countless Force talks, Kylo had explained how things worked to her if she didn't understand them quite yet. It at first had scared her, his willingness to help, but she soon realized even with his horrible intentions that Kylo Ren just wanted a friend. A partner, which is what made rejecting his hand so hard in the first place.

"Be with me, please." Rey asked again, adding more emotion to her voice. She needed to see Leia again, hell even Luke. She needed to tell them what she was feeling, and how their son had saved her and the galaxy. _They already know _Rey thought, feeling her last hope of seeing her masters fade with the sound of a nearby X-wing engine.

"Be with me!" Rey felt the ground rumble a bit, she was getting carried away. There was so much she wanted to tell Leia that she had pushed deep inside once she had gotten back. Rey knew the former general had passed on the bridge, the same moment she had used Kylo's saber to strike through him. After seeing and speaking to Luke's Force ghost on Ahch-To, she had silently prayed to converse with her late master's sister once again. Rey heard a distant roll of thunder, and immediately felt her eyes shoot open. Someone was there, she could feel their presence.

"Hello, Rey." The battle hardened, but still sweet voice pierced Rey's ear and she whipped around in the pond to gaze at her former master. A smile shot onto Rey's face before she could even speak, her calls were answered, now what would she say? "Put some clothes on." Leia's Force projection glowed with the haze of blue, her face bright and cheery. "Or a towel" Rey couldn't help but chuckle with her master, she was to happy to care about her clothes.

"Master-" Rey didn't know where to begin, but Leia had already stopped to correct her, as a master should.

"Please, save the title. I think you've grown past my teachings." The heart felt smile tugged at Rey's heart strings like a harp, playing a tune of joy but deep sadness. Rey dipped down lower, so only the top part of her neck was clearly visible above the water.

"Leia, General... I've missed you, so much." Leia gave her a warm look, and Rey could already feel the tears welling up in her eyes. There was no way she was going to make it through this without crying. "I have so much to say, so much to ask! I need your guidance, I wish you were here." Not for a second did Rey take her eyes off Leia, not willing to miss a second of this moment in her life. A Leia, understanding the impact on Rey, gave her the same unwavering attention.

"No one is ever really gone, Rey. I will always be there for you when you need me." Rey tilted her head, ready to ask her questions but still confused by what her master meant.

"How can I speak to you, if I need you?" She felt the question was stupid, but Leia replied with a smile before the wise words Rey had heard so many times in many different lessons.

"Reach with your feelings, and less with your mind. There you will find me, and countless others who came before, ready to help if you ask." There was a slight pause and Rey felt as if she would burst into tears right there, not ready to let go of her master but Leia continued. "If times get too bad, we will seek you out ourselves."

"Is that what you did on Exegol, seek me out?" Rey asked, slowly walking to the front of the pond to lean against its smooth rock. Leia shook her head, still with her faithful smile.

"We merely pushed you up. All of that power, that power came from you." Rey felt her spirits soar. T_hat power came from me! _But quickly her spirits dropped, remembering where that power came from.

"My power rose from the dark side, Leia, why did you train me?" Rey knew she had already asked Luke that exact question, but she needed to hear it from Leia. As if hearing her voice would change her entire outlook on her lineage.

"So it did, Rey, but some things are more powerful then blood." Rey let out a sigh. It was the same answer Luke gave. Hearing the sigh, Leia answered again. "I understand that your parentage might scare you, Rey. Not being able to trust yourself, it is hard." Rey braced herself, she was going to cry soon. "Your parents made the hardest decision of their lives to protect you, and the galaxy. They did that for the good, and they too were Palpatines'." The first tear trickled down Rey's face and her lips scrunched up. "You, Rey Palpatine, were ready to make the ultimate sacrifice for the greater good. You, Rey Palpatine let rose do your hair at breakfast. You, Rey Palpatine, willing fix droids in your spare time. You, Rey Palpatine looked into the eyes of evil and denied your own grandfathers deception for the _greater good_. You, Rey Palpatine, died with pride knowing you had defeated the Sith." The tears kept falling, no stopping them now. "You, Rey Palpatine, saved the entire Resistance without hesitation at the cost of your own life because _you _are more then a name of the blood that runs through you. You, Rey, are more of a Skywalker then I could ever be. You are more of a Skywalker then Luke could've hoped you be."

"I- Leia..." Rey's voice was weak, she was choking on enough emotions to last a life time. Happiness, sadness, guilt, joy, all of it. To much for her heart to bear, and she was giving into the tears. "I can't- I need your wisdom..." That was one thing Rey managed to make out in her whirlwind of thoughts, and that was she needed Leia.

"You're reaction says otherwise, Rey. You already knew what I told you, and you knew it too be true." Rey burst into another fit of tears, feeling herself being gently lifted out of the water. A towel was flung around her and tied neatly with the Force, wielded by the ghost that stood before the now standing Rey.

"How can I be something I'm not!" Those words were mere sobs and Rey collapsed into the arms of Leia, who embraced her with open arms. Leia's touch was not that of skin, but of pure energy, and Rey could feel the Force that was projecting the ghost she now hugged.

"That answers your own question. You can't be something you're not, and you are not a Palpatine." Rey looked up at her former master, tears coating her cheeks with salty liquids. Her eyes were puffy, but true.

"I am..." Rey paused, thinking for a moment she could be wrong, but in her heart it felt right. "I'm Rey Skywalker." With those words, Leia nodded her approval and stepped back. Allowing Rey to stand on her own feet, and she wiped her tears from her eyes, feeling a renewed sense of self.

"Then that is who you are, Rey, and who you will be." Rey looked sharply at her, confused by the last bit. Leia could already sense her confusion, and smiled even wider.

"What is that supposed to mean?" Rey asked, to which Leia just shook her head, refusing to answer all of her former apprentice's questions. As some things were best left unsaid.

"Does Ben know that I am proud of him?" Leia responded, watching as another tear fell down Rey's cheek. Ah yes, Leia knew. How her apprentice feel about her son, and she knows it is pure. She even knew of the Force talks, and those only made her happier.

"Tell him yourself!" Rey gave a definitive answer, sticking her nose up. She imagined how happy it would make Ben to see his mother, to hear those words. "Tell him you love him!" Rey called, seeing as the ghost of Leia was fading. Desperate to hold on, she stepped forwards and reached out to grab her masters hand.

"Rey, tell him that yourself." With a good bout of hearty laughter, the Force projection was gone. Rey was left alone again, but this time she didn't actually feel alone. If Leia had stayed she was going to ask what she had meant by that but deep down, Rey already knew what she meant and it scared her. Rey looked around, perplexed about what to do next. There was still plenty of time to kill before noon, where she would tell Ben everything that just happened. She imagined falling into his embrace, describing everything that had just taken place. She knew he would be there for her, looking back, he always had.

But there was some time before that was going to happen, and Rey now knew what she was going to do. Rey turned to a rock where she had put her garments, and she used the Force to bring her clothes to her. Holding them in place right next to her, Rey dried herself off quickly with the towel. Patting down her belly and legs before using the Force to conveniently hold it in place the her right. A few moments later she grabbed her delicates, slipping them up and clipping them behind her back. Once she was done with that, she quickly slid her pants up and fastened her belt around her. The last piece was her grey top, which resembled the style of her Ahch-To outfit.

Now that she was dressed, Rey neatly folded her towel and placed in on the rock outcrop where the small box of soap and sleeping pills sat. Walking past the box, she hadn't needed the pills since the first night back and was starting to think she might never need them again. Not to long after Rey had exited the stone clearing and was headed back up to her hut, ready to begin work on her own saber again.

* * *

Around the Resistance, it was a busy day. With Ben's help, they had tracked the old Imperial Impoundment station and had recovered a few Republic era ships. These new additions were in fairly good condition, considering they were stowed away for so long, and immediately bolstered their fleet's numbers. Even finding a collection of older X and Y-wings, which could still serve their purpose.

Ben was walking down the runway towards the Falcon, brushing past many newcomers to get there. He was thankful that none of them knew who he was, and deep down part of his wished he would be tried for his crimes. But the thought of Rey, and how that would affect her gave him determination to never let it happen.

"Where is Rey?" A young man's voice called out from a registry booth, it's tent flexed in the new breeze that engulfed the base as of late. Ben turned his attention towards the sound of the voice, and it called again. "Does anyone know where Rey is?" It sounded closer now, and Ben was perplexed. _What does this man have to do with my Rey? _Not even hesitating, Ben walked up towards the booth examining everyone there with cold eyes reminiscent of Kylo Ren. "Can someone please help me find her, she is a Force user!" This time, he spotted who was calling Rey's name. He looked young, dirty blonde hair, even holding himself like a storm trooper.

"I can help, and she is a Jedi." Ben called out to the mystery man. The word Jedi had some of the line behind Ben pause, but continue their mumbling as they waited getting registered. The young guy turned, now Ben saw he had blue eyes.

"Where is she?" The boy, or teenager quickly walked up to Ben who towered over him. Actually, Ben towered over most people he met. "I need to see her." Ben rolled his eyes, this boy needed to grow up, not see Rey. However, he was willing to help.

"Who are you?" But first he needed to make sure it was safe for Rey to meet this mystery boy. He stood straight and tall once the boy had gotten close enough to look up at Ben, who had been promoted to Corporal. The stranger clearly had military background, as he respected his superior who at the time was Ben.

"I am Zach, sir." The man now identifying himself as Zach kept is ridged posture, it was exactly how a stormtrooper would stand.

"Last name?" Ben inquired, waving with his hand to order him to break his posture. Zach relaxed a bit, and shook is head to reply to Ben's question. "You're a former stormtrooper, aren't you?" Ben, to which Zach surprisingly answered very honestly and quickly.

"Yes I was. That is why I need to see Rey!" The young mans eyes gleamed, and Ben assumed Rey had either saved him at some point or helped him walk free. Understanding this, Ben mistakenly said a First Order statement.

"Alright, take your Detachment materials and find your barracks. I'll let Rey know a boy named Zach is looking for her." Ben shook his head, remembering that the Resistance doesn't have different Detachments. "I mean, just follow the instructions to get registered and verified." Zach's eyes grew wide

"Are you also First Order?" He asked, looking at Ben. By now, he was surprised he hadn't recognized who he was yet. Perhaps he was never there to see him without his mask one, but Ben was sure there would have been pictures sent around on their standard issue holopads.

"I guess you could say that." Ben said with a chuckle, knowing he used to be the whole damn Supreme Leader of it all. At one point, Ben thought, he would have severely punished a deserter. High treason wasn't common, but many people fled. He had argued with Hux about using a clone army many times over, and now seeing _the_ Resistance, it would have been much better if they had. "Now hurry along before the line gets to long." Ben added, turning to leave quickly. Zach watched as he walked, he recognized that walk, but he couldn't remember where. He shrugged, and followed the rest of the new recruits to get registered.

* * *

Rey had lost track of time, focusing on building her own lightsaber. Crafting a hilt out of the end of her staff was proving very difficult, but the Jedi text had shown her the best way to make it was through meditation. That part, the one where she close her eyes to bond with the crystal, was easy to her. Rey was truly gifted in the Force, but now the hardest part became wiring the switch to turn it on. She looked like a surgeon, using all kinds of fine tools to wire the saber. Its basic wiring was done through her meditation work, and had already been tested, but the blade would not show unless Rey could finish the switch. Unlike Luke's saber, Rey wanted an actual switch, that turns left for on and right for off. She figured this would help if the saber ever was knocked from her hands, it would not turn off.

"Almost there..." Rey let out a breath, her eyes locked onto the last bit of wire that needed to be connected. There was a little zap in thee air and with the powers of the Force, the saber was complete. She let out a sigh of relief, she had done it! Now all that was left was to seal it, and wrap it with some grip she had left over from Jakku as a call to her roots.

Not a moment later had the final piece of metal from her staff been placed then she felt a string surge in the Force, as if there was now a permanent connection between her and her weapon. It was strange, she hadn't felt this with Luke's saber. Smiling, she wrapped her cloth like grip around the middle second of the hilt. Holding it in one hand, she examined her masterpiece. In terms of aesthetic, the saber looked fantastic, almost ancient in design. Rey had secretly wanted to add Kylo Inspired hand guards, but figured how that would look and decided it would be best to leave that out.

"Lets see if you work..." Rey breathed, holding the saber out with her right hand, her thumb on the ignition switch. Her heart started to beat faster, worrying what color it might be. _What if it is red?! _Rey shook her head, facing her fear she ignited the saber. A sound similar in tone to Luke's old saber ignited and the blade shot out. Rey had closed her eyes, feeling the ignition in her hand the Force bod between her and the saber grew up her arm and into her chest. Opening them, she saw what made her gasp.

_Yellow?_ She blinked, assuming she saw it wrong. When her eyes opened the yellow blade was still there, humming its tune as the light glowed around the dim room. _Yellow. _Rey brought it up to her face, feeling the heat of the saber and the hum of its power. "Yellow." She breathed, a smile growing on her face. Pointing it back towards the empty space, she gripped it in her hand guiding it as it hummed a sweet note. _Its so unique! And its mine! _Rey felt a sudden sense of happiness at her new saber, and quickly did a little flourish, accidentally cutting a piece of one of her chairs. "My bad." She giggled and flicked the ignition switch off, and the yellow blade shrunk back inside of its hilt.

* * *

Only about ten minutes had passed since Rey had finished her saber, when Ben came knocking. The sky to the west was built up with large dark grey clouds, a storm was looming on the base. On their way to Rey's training spots, they decided it was best to do the short loop today due to the ominous clouds on the horizon. They weren't even half way there and already they were enjoying themselves, chatting endlessly about life while training. Be had said that under Luke it was not too much different then Snoke, major differences coming with how Snoke had treated him with real life circumstances adding to the pressure.

"You're telling me, you never failed one of Snoke's missions?" Rey was in disbelief, there was no way that was close to being true. Ben laughed, looking at the lush green scenery as they walked side by side. Rey was to the left of him as they marched along the path.

"Up until I lost to you, Snoke had never seen me lose." Rey looked up at him, a playful look in the eye. Ben didn't see this glance as he was too focused on the large leaves that were to his right.

"So you did fail, when you lost to me." Ben now turned to face her, a little smile on his face.

"I had to wear my scar for the world to see, Snoke never liked my mask." Ben recalled, remembering how his former master had told him the mask was foolish and childlike. Rey tilted her head, looking away from Ben.

"Isn't Snoke just Palpatine anyways? Wasn't he in control over him or something?" Rey asked, she was unafraid to talk about her grandfather around Ben. She figured he would understand it best. Ben thought for a moment, then gave an answer.

"I suppose Snoke was a free thinking being, a clone of sorts, programmed from birth to be _like _Palpatine." He looked over at Rey who nodded, she was satisfied with that answer. It made sense to her. "But I'm sure he would step in if things got out of hand." Rey nodded again

"That is something he would do." She paused for a moment, looking over at Ben who had turned back to gaze at the plants. "Why did our Force bonds keep happening after you killed Snoke?" Rey asked, looking around for the prize ribbon that was hidden in the trees somewhere. Ben shrugged

"We are a dyad, I think Snoke- I mean Palpatine had less to do with it then he said he did." Rey realized he was right, Snoke could have just sensed the connection and used it instead of creating it, but Rey had a different answer.

"I think we did it because we needed each other, more then we were willing to say." Ben looked down at Rey and smiled, perhaps it was a mix of both. The idea of Rey wanting him then was outrageous, even if she said it now.

"They happened at some of the worst times!" Ben said with a bit of laughter, to which Rey chuckled as well. He did have a fair point, but sometimes they happened when no one was around, as if they were timed right.

"Sometimes they were nice." Rey said, with a hushed voice. Ben looked over at her but she couldn't see his smile because her head was down.

"I enjoyed them." Ben replied with pure honesty. Once the anger had passed from her not taking his hand, Ben had grown used to their chats. Even if some weren't friendly, he looked forward to them. Seeing Rey's face was like seeing light after being around the darkness of the First Order all the time. He recalled one time he had made her smile, and since Snoke was dead, he was able to freely think about how it made him feel.

"You were an ass sometimes." Rey said with a smile, squinting her eyes as a ray of sun pierced the clouds and trees hitting her face. Ben let out a laugh, before looking out to his right again.

"And you threw a broken saber at me!" Ben retorted, turning to face Rey. Once he say the light on her face he felt his legs grow weak, she looked so flawless, even with a small scar above her eyebrow. Rey turned up to face him, eyes glowing

"I threw it because you deserved it to get thrown at you." Rey stopped walking, fully facing Ben her arms were crossed and she playfully tilted her chin upwards in defiance. Ben smiled, looking down at the pretty Jedi.

"What did I say, to deserve such a punishment?" He probed, remembering exactly what he had said to cause her reaction. Rey blinked once, biting her lower lip before answering.

"I was trying to fix the Skywalker saber, and our Force bond thing happened." She giggled a bit before continuing. "You said: 'Rey, you look beautiful when you're working'." Rey looked up into his eyes, she stood with a smug look on this face. "That is when I felt the need to chuck a piece of the saber at you." Ben didn't reply yet, and reached out to put his hands on her shoulders.

"I remember what you said after that: 'I wish you wouldn't say things like that, you just confuse me'" Rey nodded, shuffling towards his body without breaking eye contact. Ben recognized this and slowly ran his hands of her shoulders down to her biceps, sending a shiver down her spine.

"Ben..." Rey felt the urge again, the same urge she had felt on the floor on Exegol and when they had danced. Ben didn't respond, but his gaze grew warmer as Rey drew nearer. Moving her hand up she placed her palm on the side of his cheek, like she had on Exegol, and Ben knew what was coming next. He moved his hands off her arms to her hips, where he firmly grasped her waist. Rey closed her eyes and leaned up on her tiptoes, perking her lips in a kiss.

Their lips crashed, sending a shock wave of feeling down Rey's body. It was like the night they touched hands only she couldn't she his future, she could feel his feelings. Ben barely had time to close his eyes before Rey's eager lips were pressed against his, she tasted good again. Midway through the passionate exchange, Rey moved her free hand to the back of Ben's head, pulling him closing in the kiss. She couldn't get enough, and neither could Ben. The two only broke apart due to the need for fresh oxygen. Rey pulled away first, opening her eyes to gaze at the face of her Force bond buddy, and he could see the excitement in her round eyes. Rey took another deep breath and Ben tightened his grip around her waist, feeling her in his hands compared to nothing else.

"Ben." Rey said again, this time more firm and assertive, as if she were claiming him to be her own. He looked down at her with his warm smile so few had seen, and Rey closed her eyes for a second kiss.

This time Ben had leaned over to kiss her, moving his left hand from her waist to her back to support her as they kissed. Feeling the same bliss and peace as their lips touched. It felt strange, having her be so closed to him, like a dream to good to be true. Rey felt swept off her feet, her heart swelling with passion as she guided her hand from his cheek to his neck, allowing her to hang in his embrace as they kissed.

Neither of them wanted to let go. Being together in that way, felt right. It also felt overdue, as if it should have already happened. The only thing to break their kiss this time was the clap of thunder not to far away, forcing the two to reluctantly break their embrace. Rey blinked a few times as she pulled away, looking into Ben's eyes as he brought her back to an upright position.

"We should head back." She breathed, the words barely audible. She was too distracted by the man in front of her to put any weight into her words. Ben nodded his agreement, pulling his hands away from her hips. Rey did they same, bringing her arms back to her side. "I have more to tell you on the way back." Rey said with a smile, her voice a little stronger now.

"Sounds good." Ben's lips felt funny speaking, he could still feel Rey on them. Another roll of thunder echoed between the trees, Ben turned to face Rey who seemed to tense up. "Let go." He said assertively, sensing Rey wasn't to fond of storms.

"Yes, lets." Rey agreed, watching as Ben turned to go down the path they came. His pace was quick, and Rey hurried to catch up with him. Once Rey had caught up to him, she intentionally leaned hard into his side, grabbing his hand in the process with hers.

"Oh." Ben spoke in surprise, his face turning red. He had never held a woman's hand before, not like this at least. He looked down at Rey, who bite her lip and smiled up at him, squeezing her hand tighter against his as they walked.

Rey planned to tell him of the talk she had with his mother, but after their kiss, she figured it would be better to deal the news later. Walking hand in hand, Rey had never felt more appreciated. Ben understood her, he always had, that is one thing the old Kylo Ren never lied about. Rey sighed, resting her head against the side of his arm.

_Is this what love feels like?_

* * *

**Ah, I told you! This chapter wasn't short! **

**To be honest, it was probably one of my favorite ones to write! I love emotional scenes, and this had plenty.**

**Rey has felt love before, by the way. Just not **_this _**kind of love. Rey loves her friends, she loves Leia and Luke but that's not the way she feels for Ben (Obviously)**

**Anyways, thank you all for your wonderful words in the reviews! I love reading them, and right now I am at 59 so lets aim for getting 65 reviews for next chapter! **

**If you can follow and favorite too! I appreciate all the support. **

**And if we can get 65 reviews I would love you all that much more!**

**Sincerely yours,**

**London**


	10. The Drink

**Ah! You made it to chapter 10! Thank you for reading my story, all of you out there. I really am thankful for your time!**

**I've made some critical decisions about this story, I figured I should share.**

**1) I am making a lemon (Yes, there will be a sex scene) but, I am posting that as whole separate story to keep this one rated T. A move that should keep the story viewership growing. For those that would like to read it, I will upload it the day of the chapter it was supposed to happen in. It will be titled "The Epicinium: Lemon"  
**

**2) I really am having trouble grasping how Rey would feel about such relations (i.e sexual stuff), so if you have any suggestions feel free to PM me or drop them in the reviews**

**3) I will not make anyone more 'war' scenes. Fighting scenes between characters will happen, but no more multi chapter battles. You guys seemed to not like them, so I will take out the next three part battle I had planned. **

**Enjoy the Reylo, I have a lot of it planned!**

**Maybe even a flash back or two, who knows...**

**Sincerely, **

**London.**

* * *

Rey had barely managed to make it to the Falcon before the heavens opened up to release a hailstorm of rain down onto the base. Ben had been called by Finn to help with locating more impounded Republic ships that were scattered around the galaxy the second the two arrived back, and Rey already missed his presence. The porgs were unusually quite, Rey guessed they had sensed the storm. Luke had told her animals could sense and feel the Force, but not use it. "Instinct" he had called it, explaining that ancient Jedi brought special birds into kyber mines. If the bird died, the mine was unsafe.

Thunder boomed overhead, making Rey flinch. From her seat on the Falcon, she could hear all the deep rumbles and sharp splits of lighting cascading down from the sky. She hated thunderstorms, lightning was her biggest fear. Sitting alone in her quarters, she looked towards the small bed and decided to lay down, maybe rest would take her mind of the storm.

Another bolt rang out, closer this time, and Rey felt her abdominal muscles tense up at the sound. Waiting a moment before releasing, Rey let out a breath. _It is okay to be afraid_, she remembered telling herself. After her first thunderstorm she just accepted she would never be okay with thunder and lighting, but at least it wasn't like Poe with his bones. Smiling a bit, despite being increasingly nervous, Rey pulled up a small blanket around her for comfort.

A third crackle sounded with the force of a thousand ion cannons. Flinching again, Rey assumed the storm was right over the base. _I hope everyone is inside... _she thought, worrying someone had been foolish enough to walk on the runway during this storm. After a few moments of staring into the ceiling with thunder rumbling overhead, Rey noticed a book she hand't seen before on a desk. Using the Force, she floated it towards her.

"Who put you here?" Rey asked the book, turning it over to read the cover. "The Tale of Mistress Lykke" She couldn't contain her laughter. _A romance novel! Could this be Ben's? No, he would never! _Rey ran her fingers over the book, attempting to sense the owner. "Not Finn, he doesn't like books... Poe?" Rey let out a gasp, before a huge smile grew on her face. "There is no way..." Rey flipped open the cover, maybe it was a really good book, and Poe wasn't actually into this genre.

Rey flipped to a random chapter of the book and began to read. After a few pages of skimming over paragraphs Rey began to sound out the story to herself, astonished by what she saw. "In the garden, I awaited the arrival of Soren. A man with such treasures to bestow upon me in such ways I had only dreamed about. Wrapped in a cloak of anticipation, my lower regions began to..." Rey felt her cheeks grow hot and she quickly slammed the book closed, exhaling deeply she started to giggle. _Poe, you're hopeless..._

Just then another boom of thunder rumbled through the Falcon. Rey flinched again, stopping her laughter dead in its tracks. She felt her fingers tighten around the book as the thunder kept rolling, sending deep vibrations through the hollow walls of the ship. When the rumbling stopped, Rey slowly relaxed her muscles and sighed. _No sense in laying here doing nothing, might as well check on the Porgs. _

Rey got up nervously as more thunder boomed overhead. Despite her fear, she neatly put her blanket back on the bed and placed Poe's book where she had found it. She exited her quarters with stiff legs, walking down the halls looking for the nesting Porgs. A few moments later she came to a nest of three, who huddled around each other. Smiling, Rey reached over to pet one when she felt the landing hatch to the Falcon open, sending sounds of cascading rain throughout the halls.

Instantly standing straight, Rey whipped around and reached for her saber on her hip. It wasn't there. _Uh oh. _Rey remembered she had set it down on the desk in her quarters when she arrived at the Falcon. The ramp to enter the ship was now fully down, and Rey had a choice on her hands. _I can either go face whoever is here with no weapon, just my abilities or go grab my saber and hope they are friendly... _There was not a moment to waste, Rey made her mind up and ran back to her quarters, which was on the opposite side of the landing bay. She could hear the footsteps coming up the ramp, and she hurried into her quarters.

The Falcon was an easily recognizable ship, and a good code breaker could make the doors open without codes or a fob with ease. Rey hadn't remembered if she had locked it or not, so it might have just been open. Rey saw her saber a few feet away, with no time left she Force pulled it to her. Since there was a huge influx of people joining the Resistance, some asshole could have just joined to ransack the Falcon. Or worse, they could be trying to destroy it.

The mysterious footsteps got closer, they sounded hurried but strong. Rey pulled her saber up to an offensive stance, waiting for the intruder to show themselves or walk by. A crack of thunder rolled through the Falcon, disorienting Rey and for a bereft moment she could not hear the footsteps getting closer. In that time, the intruder had made their way all the way down the hall and turned the corner to enter Rey's quarters.

In a flash, Rey ignited her saber and reached out with the Force push the stranger back against the walls of the ship. Rey could hear him grunt as he hit the wall, but in the glow of yellow, she could not see her intruder and stepped forward to confront him anyways.

"Who are you?" Rey demanded with a strong assertive tone, as another bolt of lighting sent a clap of thunder down onto the base. Rey could sense the mans location on the floor, and pointed her saber at him. The glow of the light made it hard for Rey to make out the details of his face.

"Rey-" She raised to swing, in a moment of anger "REY! Stop, it's me! Poe!" Rey knew the voice, and she relaxed her arm allowing the saber to fall to her side, revealing it was in fact Poe Dameron on the floor in front of her. His face was a mix of fear, anger, and confusion.

"I'm sorry..." Rey unignited her saber, feeling embarrassed and humiliated. "I shouldn't have done that." She had lost her cool and almost attacked a friend of hers, the storm had made her uneasy it seemed. Poe's eyes darted back and fourth between her face and her saber. Poe was very, very confused about why it had been yellow. Not only that, why she looked so afraid.

"It's okay, Rey." Water dripped off his hair into his face, he stood up slowly and saw the emotions on Rey's face. She looked like she were about to cry. "I'm just here looking for my book." He brushed himself off, still soaked from his run to the Falcon. He had so many questions right now, but only one stuck out to him. "Are you alright?" Rey felt an overwhelming sense of relief and regret.

"Yea, I'm fine." She shrugged, hooking her saber back to her hip. She dropped her gaze from his face, Poe always knew when she was lying. Just then, a loud boom of thunder shook through the Falcon and Rey visibly winced, feeling her shoulders tense up and hands clench. Poe was a smart guy, he put two and two together pretty quick.

"Not a fan of thunderstorms, huh?" His voice was soothing. Poe wasn't always this way, but he genuinely cared about his troops and friends. Rey looked back at him, and he could tell he was right.

"No." Rey simply answered, relaxing her shoulders only slightly. He sighed, walking up to her. She looked at him with a side glance, Rey flinched again as a smaller bolt sent a weak roll of thunder that echoed the base. To Poe, this made a lot of sense to him. Rey had lived all her life on Jakku, where it never rained, ever. He could only have imagined what she thought when she experienced her first thunderstorm.

"Not much rain on Jakku, makes sense." He placed his hand on her shoulder, she was so tense. She looked up at him, but quickly turned away to head back into her quarters.

"I don't like lightening." Rey announced dryly, her back was turned to him. That too, made sense to him too. Rey had probably never seen it until only a year ago, but he could have sworn he had seen it come out of her hands before. She bent over slightly to grab Poe's book he had come for, and he had to resist himself form looking at her inappropriately.

"It's just energy, nothing to be afraid of." Rey got stiff for a moment, standing up straight. Lightening by itself was scary to her, but the underlying meaning it had to her only made it worse.

"Enough energy to kill us, instantly." Another roll of thunder entered their earlobes as if on cue with Rey's fear. She tensed again, and Poe looked over at her to make sure it was okay. He knew Rey was very rational, so giving a rational explanation should comfort her.

"That's if it hits us." That was a mistake. Poe noticed Rey's eyes grow wide with fear, and he instantly regretted what he said. Rey already knew Sith lightening could be used to injure and kill, but she had no idea that natural lightening could even hit people.

"There is a chance?" She raised her eyebrows looking over at Poe, and he shook his head as if to retract his previous statement. He looked over at a chair and took a seat. Honesty was key with Rey, he knew he needed to stick with his plan.

"Yes, but the chances are minuscule, near -impossible." Rey raised her eyebrows still, giving him a look. He sensed she didn't believe him, so now was the time to get his science on. Another bolt struck near, causing Rey to tense up yet again.

"When a low pressure system meets a low-" Poe began to restate his academy essay on thunderstorms, when Rey cut him off abruptly.

"Its getting closer." Poe looked confused, Rey's eyes darted up and around nervously. There hadn't even been another bolt, or even a roll of thunder. There was no way she could tell. Just then, a huge blot struck down. It sounded fairly close, the thunder was no longer a rumble but a crackle. He looked over at Rey, who had become a tense ball of Jedi.

"Here, lemme come over there." Poe stood up from his current chair, making his way over to Rey who sat on the end of the bed. She gave a weak smile as he took a seat next to her, an attempt to comfort his worried friend. "This is a bad one, they usually aren't this intense." Rey gave a little snort, looking away from him.

"Can it get any worse than this?" She asked, not exactly wanting an answer, but still curious none the less. Poe sighed, it was almost saddening seeing the Force user in a state of fear. Normally, Poe would count on her to protect him if he was ever in direct danger. He tried to remember to be honest, Rey liked honesty.

"Yes, unfortunately." He answered firmly, rubbing the back of his head. Rey turned to him, her eyes wide and mysterious, and it was impossible for Poe to gauge her thoughts.

"When will it be over." Her voice was quiet, almost scary quiet, as if she were pleading to him without giving up her self-esteem. Poe now felt genuinely bad for his friend, it was unusual seeing her in such a way. Finn had sometimes talked about how Rey could get emotional, often angry at times, but Poe didn't believe him as he had only seen Rey act a certain way.

"Soon, I would guess." He tried to think of the science explanation to give her. Rey waited for his answer, just gazing at the pilots face. "There is only a certain amount of energy in the atmosphere. Eventually the storm will die out, or it will just blow over. The worst storms never last the longest, we just have to wait." Poe felt pretty confident in his answer, hoping that it would reassure Rey, but the way her eyes sank to the floor told him otherwise.

"I hate waiting." Rey softly kicked the ground, there was a hint of malice in her voice that made Poe instantly believe her. He had never actually heard her back story, only thing he did know that she was a scavenger from Jakku. Suddenly, Poe got an idea that he figured would work to calm her down.

"I know something that can make the wait feel shorter." He rubbed the back of his head harder, and Rey quickly perked up to look at him. "It might be against your Jedi code or- err something like that." Rey smiled a bit, this time Poe could tell it was real.

"I've read the whole code, I don't intend to follow every one of those restrictive rules." Rey was telling the truth. After reading the whole code she firmly believed that some of it was unnecessarily strict, and as the last Jedi around she felt as if there was no need to follow the code. That is a story Rey would tell him later.

"Well, good." Poe gave a little smile as another roll of thunder washed through the Falcon, and Rey visibly tightened up. "You got my gift, right? The one for talking to Finn." Rey nodded in response, Poe let his smile grow. "Great! I have another of the same bottle here, on the Falcon. We should share a drink!" Rey smiled for a moment, but her smile quickly changed to a frown.

"Leia never let me drink." Rey mumbled, feeling suddenly ashamed for even considering it. Poe rolled his eyes, _o__f course Leia would deprive her of such a god experience! _He stood up, walking over to the desk he was just at as another boom of thunder echoed overhead.

"How old are you again, Rey." Poe asked without turning to look at her. Rey tensed a bit, this was a question she got a lot, but didn't always know how to answer. On Jakku, she knew how old she was when she was left there as Unkar Plutt kept record of the new scavengers age. Rey did not know when her birthday was, but she did know she arrived on Jakku when she was five years old and spent fourteen years surviving on that wasteland according to her counting.

"I am twenty, I think." Rey added that last bit, not knowing if it was okay or not to second guess herself in front of Poe. He stopped rummaging through the desk, slightly gasping in surprise.

"You don't know your own age?" Poe clearly recalled celebrating her birthday a while back but had forgotten how old the Jedi Apprentice was turning. Rey felt embarrassed, feeling her cheeks grow hot, she shook her head as another loud thunder boom shook the cabin.

"I don't know my birthday, and my counting could have been slightly off... I know I'm at least twenty." Poe realized again that on Jakku, Rey had no means of knowing when she was born if she had no one to tell her. This made him sympathetic for the woman before him, but that was only natural.

"Don't worry about it, if you say you're twenty, you're twenty." Rey gave a faint smile, as Poe opened another drawer to find his already opened bottle of Rum. "Aha! Found it." Next to the bottle were four glasses, but he only pulled out two.

"Is that the same stuff you got me?" Rey asked curiously, leaning off the bed to get a better view of the bottle before he turned around. Poe twisted open the cap, moving the closer together.

"Yes it is, this is my favorite." Poe replied, not taking his eyes off the glasses as he poured his cup. Rey could already smell the alcohol in the drink, it was a powerful smell she hadn't had much experience with. Poe finished filling his glass halfway, and started to pour Reys'.

"It must be good, if it can pass the impeccable palate that is Poe Dameron." Rey teased, standing up to walk over to the pilot. One thing she had noticed was that Poe had a very simplistic diet, even with the huge assortment of exotic foods to try on market day.

"I agree." Poe sarcastically replied, turning around with the two glasses in his hand, the bottle still on the desk. Rey smiled, her mind slowly fading from the thunder that rumbled overhead.

"Which ones mine?" She asked, reaching out with her hand. Poe looked down to make sure he poured enough into hers, and handed her one that was only a quarter of the way full. He only wanted this to relax her, not get her wasted, even though that would be a sight to behold.

"This one, have you ever drank before?" He asked, raising an eyebrow at the young Jedi. Rey nodded and looked down at her glass, it seemed stronger than the drinks she had at the celebration.

"Yes, only twice before. Once at the celebration after my- I mean our victory on Exegol." Poe laughed at her little joke, it was true that she played a huge role in the success of the battle. However, he was curious on the first time.

"And the other time?" He questioned, still with his eye brow raised. Rey blushed slightly, not ready to tell the full story about her adventures on Ajan Kloss. Poe noticed her blush, and leaned back. "Come on, you can tell me." She laughed again, and brought the drink to her face.

"It was only one drink! It doesn't matter anyways." Rey quickly took a fairly large sip, and instantly regretted it. The drink was sweet, but the burn of alcohol quickly filled her mouth and back of her throat. She swallowed hard, her face scrunching up as an amused Poe looked on, taking a moderate sip of his drink. "Ack!" Rey coughed. "You could have warned me!" She gave Poe a look before taking a much smaller sip of her already gone drink.

"Where would the fun be in that, huh?" Poe said with a tease, holding his glass to his mouth watching his friend react to his drink. He should've warned her, but it was to damn funny to watch her reaction. After all, Rey was a tough one, she would get over it. Rey looked at the empty glass and felt the warm sensation of the drink through her chest.

"Is this enough to make me feel more relaxed, like you said?" She questioned raising an eyebrow,while holding her glass out towards him in case the ace needed to pour more into it. Poe thought for a moment, then shrugged taking a final sip of his first cup.

"Maybe, but I wouldn't think so. You're a Jedi anyways, you probably have mind powers to resist the onset of the alcohol." He turned around and grabbed the bottle, then turning quickly around to pour some into both their glasses. "But no more after this until it kicks in." He cautioned, filling his glass back up halfway.

"Why?- and no, that is not a power that Jedi have." Rey replied, pushing her glass closer to him as if rushing him along to pour more. She hated the way thunder made her tense, if this could help she needed it fast. Fear, as a wise Jedi once said, is a path to the darkside. And with her heritage, that was something she must avoid at all cost.

"We don't want you stumbling around the base." Poe replied, pouring some into her cup. This time he left it at halfway, figuring it would be enough that way. Rey rolled her eyes, taking her glass back once Poe had finished pouring.

"I guess I can see the issue with that." Rey nonchalantly replied back, as the new General turned around to place the bottle back on the desk. "Ya know, I do wonder what that is like, you know to be drunk." She said more quietly, putting her glass to her mouth as the Pilot turned back to face his friend, raising an eyebrow.

"If your asking to do it now, I am saying no." Rey didn't mind, getting hammered wasn't high on her list of to-do's at the moment. Poe sighed and continued "But if you do ever want to have a night out, we can share drinks at the bar one time." Poe suddenly stopped, realizing how it had sounded as if he was asking her out. However, the Jedi was oblivious to any of that, she had no idea.

"Leia would kill me if she was still around to watch me have drinks with the infamous Poe." Rey laughed, making eye contact with him as she took a sip of her drink. She could feel the warm liquid deep within her stomach, and it felt comforting, like a blanket. Poe reached to rub the back of his neck again.

"You're wrong, Leia would kill me first." Poe laughed a bit thinking about how his old leader would have reacted to such a statement. While there was no romantic implications, a man like Poe taking Leia's young Jedi would have gotten him court marshaled for sure.

"She never liked us together, I can only imagine why." Rey sarcastically joked, taking another sip of her rum. Poe looked down at his glass and laughed as well, he could still hear Leia's voice saying 'Keep your paws off her.' Poe knew she wasn't worried about him getting _inside _Rey rather then getting inside her head convincing her to go on daring missions with him that could result in her capture or worse. He knew it was wise to keep Rey on the base until need be, but it still angered him when he lost good men that could have been saved by Rey's powers.

"I always wanted to-" Poe's heartfelt speech was abruptly cut off by Rey finishing her glass and holding it out to him. Her eyes round and innocent, asking for more. "Hey- that is enough for now." Poe reluctantly replied. Out of all the hard things he has had to do, saying no to Rey's face was one of the hardest.

"I don't feel anything." Rey countered, hoping to swing her argument and get more drink. It tasted good, a great blend of sweet and dry with a decent amount of burn. Unfortunately, Rey did not know how alcohol worked, and her proposal fell through. Poe gave her a look.

"You don't now, but you will soon." He saw Rey tilt her head in confusion. _I guess on Jakku they don't teach that stuff. _He thought, walking over to her, taking her glass away and placing on the desk next to the half used bottle. Rey just watched him as he did so, trusting his words over her own. Poe sighed. "I'll explain it all over a game of Dejarik." He said, which in turn caused Rey to smile.

"I'm going to beat you." Rey said with a smirk, teasing her competitive friend into a challenge. The Dejarik board in the Falcon was an older one, but still played great. Poe rolled his eyes, brushing off her challenge.

"Have you ever beat Chewie?" He asked, motioning with his head for her to follow as he walked passed her. Rey smiled, her mind completely off the rolling thunder that still rumbled over the base. It didn't cross her mind how all it took to get her mind off the storm was not the drink but it was a friend.

"No" Rey replied quickly, the words escaping her smile as they walked the halls. Maybe it was the drinks kicking in, or maybe it was her company. Whatever the reason, Rey couldn't stop smiling. Reflecting on her day, she smile grew even wider. She had completed her saber, walked with Ben and shared an embrace with him that she had longed for, and now she was sharing a drink with a friend she rarely had quality time with. In her happiness, she failed to notice Poe bring the bottle with them.

_Nothing can possible go wrong, not today, today is a good day._

And that was the last thing Rey remembered from that night.

* * *

**Ah! I've done it again, another cliff hanger. Oops. **

**The next chapter is going to be so much fun to write, ugh, I can't wait.**

**I can't say much about next chapter without spoiling it, but I can say it will be hilarious and adorable. **

**Nothing really else to comment one besides that. **

**Oh yea, review please! Reading the messages you guys leave makes my day and I even respond to some of them!**

**As of right now I am at 68 reviews, so lets aim for 74 before next chapter! If you all chip in to get to 80 reviews I will add some extra Reylo fluff next chapter just for fun!**

**Sincerely yours,**

**London. **


	11. This Mistake

**I am sorry in advance for taking so long, I will fully explain why in the post-chapter authors note. **

**So much potential to be the best chapter I've written, I just need to execute this right! If this takes some time to be posted, let it be known now that the reason was I took my time in writing it. **

**On with some future details and plans, in case anyone was worried about implications after the events of last chapter. **

**This will mostly be fluff, so enjoy it before stuff gets serious again. **

**I promised no more battle scenes, and a woman of my word so I will not add large scale conflicts. You can expect some form of conflict, but not in the war kind of sense. **

**With that being said, I will leave you to guess at the type of conflicts that will be happening in later chapters! I would love to hear your ideas!**

**Now, on with the chapter!**

**\- London**

* * *

Rey awoke with a jolt, her eyes flashing open to find the ceiling of hut. Looking down she saw herself neatly tucked in her blanket, but she felt everything with extra sensitivity. _What the- _as if on cue, her head split into a pounding a headache and her mouth dried up like the Jakku dessert.

"Oww" She hissed, pulling her hand out from under the covers to grip her forehead. She closed her eyes, the light flowing into her room from the window seemed unbearable. Her stomach churned as well, feeling it coil into knots. "What the hell happened..." She cursed herself, rubbing her temple with one hand. As if her slow massage was the trick, she remembered having the drinks with Poe. _That could not have been enough... _Then she remembered the game of Dejarik, and the bottle.

"Oh my, please don't-" It was at that moment she became aware of why the blanket felt so close. She quickly opened her eyes, reaching up with her hands she peered under the covers. _I'm naked- _"Please, please, please don't tell me I- Rey! You're such an idiot!" She let her head flop back down on the pillow, closing her eyes in defeat. "I'm going to-"

"Good morning, sleepy head" Rey's eyes shot open, quickly recognizing the voice of Ben. She rolled her body over to see where he was, with that motion however, Rey felt her back ache with soreness. Once her eyes focused, which Ben thought was incredibly adorable to watch her rub her eyes, she was able to see he sat at her desk with the chair turned to face her.

"Ben..." Rey spoke his name first, still a little disoriented from the hangover. He smiled, and she scanned his face for signs of emotion. From her initial glace, he seemed amused and happy, which surprised her a little. "What happened, or" She winced again, closing her eyes while her head pounded. "What did I do?" She opened her eyes to find him smiling again, as if he were about to burst out laughing. "I'm being serious Ben." Rey said, with more of a firm tone this time around.

"Alight, alright..." He had tried his best to contain his laughter, but started to laugh anyways. Rey found his laugh cute, very, very cute, but now was not the time for him to be laughing at her.

"Hey!" Rey half shouted at him, snapping Ben out of his laughter immediately. He could sense her annoyance, and didn't want to upset her in the state he knew she was in. From what he knew, Rey had never been hungover before, and he started to feel something he had denied himself of for awhile... empathy.

"I have a few questions myself." He began, relaxing back into the chair. Rey raised an eye brow, propping herself up against the side of the wall her hammock was on, causing it to shift. This position was much more comfortable on her neck that was incredible sore.

"How could I answer, Ben, I don't remember a thing." Rey brought up the blanket to cover her neck, not wanting to expose herself to Ben in this manner. He chuckled and turned around briefly, grabbing an object off the desk before turning back to face the hungover Jedi.

"I doubt you made this while drunk." He replied. Rey tilted her head, _made? What is he_\- Rey got her answer as soon as she saw the yellow blade of her newly crafted light saber spring out from the hilt in his hand. She peered past the glow to see him still smiling. "I see you finally finished it." He said, turning it off before placing it on the table again.

"Yeah, I finished before our walk." Rey replied casually, wondering whether he was angry about the color or knew something she didn't about yellow sabers. He nodded, looking back at the hilt, no emotion on his face just the smile.

"I must say, you did a fantastic job." He turned back to face Rey with a smile. It was true, he did like the hilt design and was proud she was able to finish it without his help. Rey's right lip went up to a half smile, happy that Ben approved of her work, but she had more pressing matter to attend to.

"So" Ben looked up intently. "Are you going to tell me what happened now?" She asked, giving him a hard look, not playing anymore games. He let out a sigh, flashing a smirk as he thought of a quick prank to pull on her.

"Are you _sure_ you want to know." He stood up, trying his best to put on a concerned face. Apparently he did a good job, as Rey's eyes widened and a sense of fear washed over her like a tidal wave.

"Please tell I didn't sleep with P-" Rey wasn't able to finish before Ben cut her off, kneeling beside her hammock where she lay. His face was grim, and he looked straight into her eyes forcing himself not to laugh. He could sense Rey's fear, and had second thoughts about his prank.

"You did..." He joked back, but with a serious voice. Upon hearing the news, and reading his face, Rey felt an overwhelming sense of shame stab through her. Ben could sense this, as the entire hut burst into feeling he could sense with their Force connection. It wasn't long before Rey's lips started to curl back, and a tear ran down her right cheek.

"I'm sorry Ben." The feeble voice cracked out of Rey's mouth, as more tears began to race down her face. Ben, now feeling terrible, stood up. For starters he was shocked; he hadn't expected Rey to apologize for whatever she thought she had done. Second; whatever it was she clearly meant it, as Ben could barely think as raw sadness filled the hut. He paused for a second searching the Force for what possibly Rey could be thinking about. It didn't take him long to find out, and he suddenly felt very, very bad.

"No, no Rey! It is okay!" Ben put on a smile, speaking in a friendly tone. "I was just kidding, I'm the one who's sorry!" He reached out with his hand, a gesture to which Rey just looked at. "None of that happened!" Rey looked up at him, anger flashing in her eyes for a moment, before she began to question whether or not he was just trying to comfort her.

"Then how am I naked?" She asked, glancing down at her figure that was covered up by blankets. Ben noticed her voice sharp with apprehension and smiled warmly back at her, remembering what happened fondly. This smile, however, just confused Rey more who had stopped crying.

"About an hour after I put you in bed, you stood up and yelled 'Why is it so hot in this god forsaken jungle!'" Ben smirked "I must admit, you're quite the handful while drunk." Rey felt her cheeks grow hot, embarrassed as Ben pointed to her garments that were strewn across her hut in various locations. He wasn't lying, and due to his smile she assumed the rest of her evening went in a similar manner.

"Can you tell me the rest of what happened... I can't remember." Rey asked, gazing up at him with trustworthy eyes. Grabbing the end of her blanket, she pulled it up to her neck to get cozy. Ben sighed, using the Force to pull a chair up behind in to sit on.

"You remember, like before, search your memory." Ben said, in a firm voice. He didn't want to explain that he had only found her a few hours before he went to bed. He knew there would be gaps in his story, and all Rey had to do was search her mind like he did hers to find the missing details of the night. "Oh, take these." Ben remembered that a friendly onlooker had given him some pain killers for Rey to use in the morning. Rye perked up, and caught the bottle Ben has tossed to her.

"Alight, I will try." Rey replied, gaining confidence in herself even with her splitting head ache that would soon be cured as she swallowed two pills. Take a breath, with Ben overseeing if she needed any assistance, Rey began to look inwards and search her own mind for the recollection of her intoxicated night.

"Its okay, I feel it too." Ben gave a little motivation, reaching out to touch her hand under the blankets with his. Rey barely heard him though, all she could see were her own memories. Not long after, the night started to unfold before her eyes...

* * *

"How?!" Poe's mouth hung open, astonished by his defeat in Dejarik at the hands of Rey. Smiling, she leaned back into the seat and crossed her arms. "That's impossible!" He spoke again, getting at eye level with the holoboard to inspect the game up close. Rey shrugged, even with her mind foggy with the drinks that had now kicked in, she could sense his moves a mile away.

"You're predictable." She proclaimed, hitting the reset button on the game causing the holographic figures to disappear. He looked up to meet her smug grin, a little bit irritated by her comment.

"Rematch, now!" He demanded, firing up his competitive instincts. After spending some time around him, Finn and Rey both concluded he wold have made a great land speeder racer had it not been for the war. Rey started to laugh though, knowing she would win, and because she felt more giggly now the drinks had settled in.

"I'm surprised you'd want to lose again!" Rey jabbed at him, flicking the switch to turn the game back on. Whatever the drinks were doing, they certainly had worked. Her head felt fuzzy, her chest felt warm, her cheeks were slightly flushed and her legs felt kind of weird. Whatever it was, the feelings were great.

"Every time someone wins, they take another drink, deal?" Poe said, knowing that if he got his young friend drunk enough, he could shake her focus. Rey raised an eyebrow, intrigued by the proposition. The holographic pieces appeared back in formation as she reached for the bottle.

"Sounds fair to me." She grabbed it, pulling it towards her mouth taking a decent swig. Her previous drinks had kicked in, this taking away the initial burn she felt when first drinking his rum. Poe watched her, his eyes gleaming. This was the Rey he always thought was there, but too stuck to her ways to come out. As she put the bottle down, he thought that maybe he was a bad influence, but quickly shrugged that thought off.

"Ready to get your ass kicked?" He chirped, placing his hands on the board in preparation for the hardest fight of his life. At least when he played Chewie, he knew he was going to lose. Rey flashed her teeth back, getting ready to make the first move.

"Are you?" Rey retorted, placing a piece in the same spot as her previous opening move. Poe saw this, and matched her move with a different strategy then last time hoping to catch her in a mid game trap. Rey, being as smart as she was, saw his move coming before it happened and thought for a moment on what she should do to counter. Watching her think, Poe began to wonder how she had gotten so good at the game. _Perhaps she played on Jakku, or maybe Jedi also study this game as part of their training._ Rey then moved a piece, an unexpected move, but one that would make sense later.

The rest of the game went accordingly; Poe trying his best as Rey matched him move for move with her own plot. To poor Poe, it always felt like Rey were five steps ahead of him during the game. He observed her as she studied the board for what felt like minutes, until she finally moved. Poe had also noticed she played in advance, guessing his moves before he did them and preparing before he even knew what he was going to do.

"That's game." Rey said, moving her final piece in line to chapter his General. Looking up she gave a half smirk, more of the alcohol kicking in making her face feel heavy. He just stared at the board, mystified. The only person he ever read about having plans like these were the Emperor, and Leia. Of course there were better Dejarik players out there, but he couldn't think of any before he blurted out what was on his mind.

"How." He asked again, not taking his eyes of the board. "You sense what I'm going to do five moves before I make them!" Rey just gazed at him, her mind slow to react. Impeded by the alcohol, she was starting to zone out at times. "The only person who plans wars like that was the Emperor." Poe said, shaking his head in dismay. Rey's head sort of jerked up in a tipsy manner, hearing her grandfathers name.

"That would make sense." Rey thought aloud, knowing Finn must have not told the pilot about her lineage. He looked up at her with confusion, taking a second to think about what she said.

"What?" Poe question, still confused. Maybe the drinks were finally catching up to his Jedi pal, but he sensed she was just playing coy with him. Rey sat up straighter, feeling how odd her head felt when she moved. Shrugging it off, she elaborated on her previous statement.

"You said I'm like the Emperor, that makes sense." Rey continued to beat around the bush. Even in the very isolated, enclosed and personal space they were in she found it somewhat hard to talk about her lineage to a non-force user. Rey wasn't afraid of the truth, or of Poe knowing the truth. The thing we was worried about would be his reaction, even if they butted heads more often then Rams, Poe was still her friend. That was something she didn't want to lose, but the truth always reveals itself, this time the truth seemed to be revealed to Poe in their games of Dejarik.

"I'm lost." Poe said with a sigh, shaking his head and leaning back. Grabbing the bottle he took a swig, he noticed Rey's face get serious while he did so and started to worry a bit. He had not the faintest clue about what was to come next.

"I am a Palpatine." Rey's voice was clear, calm and slight unnerving to Poe. In disbelief he stared at Rey for a moment. The look on her face confused him even more; there she was, calm and serious, but her cheeks were flushed from the drinks and her eyes were starting to glaze. _is she serious? _He though _or is it just the drinks? _In a quick decision he went with her just having to much to drink.

"I think you've had enough." Poe said, taking the bottle and setting it on the floor. While he looked down to place the bottle on the floor, he could hear Rey's giggle. This reaction unsettled him more, perhaps she was telling the truth, but how could that be? Looking back up he saw her lean back and sigh.

"No, silly. I haven't had enough!" Poe snorted, but he wasn't in the mood for laughter, so it ended up sounding like a muffled sneeze. "I am the granddaughter of the Senate, I am Rey Palpatine." Suddenly, it all made sense to Poe. Being smart, he had picked up on Rey's quirky personality traits very quickly, but he could never explain them. Now, they all made sense. Rey always seemed to have energy, or power, as Leia said. Rey would get angry, which to Poe that was never a problem, but he noticed how Leia would scold her. No wonder Rey always thought of Kylo different, they _understood _each other better then anyone else could. Of course Rey would hate lightning; not only had she had little experience with it, but it was quite literally inside her- and Poe had seen her use it. After his mind stopped spinning, he formed a reply.

"How long..." He started to worry, that she had kept this a secret. "How long have you known?" Rey frowned, sensing fear start to build up slowly across form her. Maybe he was just shocked, and nothing more.

"Just recently, Ben told me when we were on Kijimi." Rey informed him as the memories of her shock and devastation slowly crept back into her head, delayed by the alcohol in her veins. Poe let out an audible sound of relief, slumping in his chair. He felt embarrassed about being worried, or even frightened by his Jedi friend.

"That must have been hard." He spoke, looking up at her with soft eyes. "Learning that kind of news... on that mission." Rey nodded, dropping her gaze to the floor. "No wonder you seemed so distant then, I'm sorry." Poe finished, grabbing the bottle from off the ground and placing it back on the table before sliding it to Rey. "You could use another drink."

"It was hard." Rey muttered, swinging her head back up slowly feeling her haziness from the drinks really start to kick in. "I'm just glad I had people to help me overcome it" She paused, taking the bottle. "Or in better words, accept myself for who I was." Quickly she put the bottle to her mouth and took another drink. Poe suddenly felt empathy for his friend, and knew exactly what to say to cheer her up.

"What you are is an amazing, selfless hero who deserves a better name then that." Rey put the bottle down, and Poe tapped his fingers on the table. "And, just for the record, I would have accepted who you are then, and now, had you found out and told me earlier." Rey felt relieved, and a smile grew on her face.

"Thank you." She breathed, flicking the switch on to start another game. Poe nodded and took the bottle for himself as the holograms appeared back on the board, not caring if he was going to lose again. These are the moments he would always remember, if they weren't drinking so much.

* * *

"Yes!" Poe yelled in celebration as Rey slumped her head onto the board. Poe stood up shakily on the chair in a victory pose, the last piece of Rey's troop was captured and he had finally beaten her. Rey just laughed, feeling her hot face against the cool table. "I, Poe Dameron, have finally defeated the infamous Rey!" Excited he placed his foot on the table and saluted himself. Rey rolled her head over to the right, her cheek mushed against the table. Her glazed eyes slowly looked up at her friend and she laughed harder.

"Shut it." Rey thought she slurred her words, but couldn't tell, as she wasn't paying to much attention to what she was doing. Her mind was loopy, darting from place to place. Any effort to stay focused was to no avail, however, she was aware to her state of intoxication. Poe wobbled a bit, looking down at her.

"I will never forget this day!" Not even a second after he finished speaking, his foot suddenly jerked forward and in an instant he was falling towards the ground. "Wh-" He closed his eyes, sensing that he couldn't stop the fall. Rey saw this happen out of one eye, shocked for a moment but instinctively reached out with the Force grabbing him and locking him in place. Before Poe could even brace for impact, he felt a strange hum around him. Opening his eyes, Poe found himself hovering inches away from floor of the Falcon.

"Are you alright?" Rey's voice filled with drunken concern. Poe glanced at where Rey was to find that she had stood up using the table for support, and held one arm out._ That must be how she caught me, with the Force- _Poe thought, even thought it was obvious.

"Y-yes, I am..." Rey walked over, kneeling beside him. Using the Force when drunk felt quite weird. "Can you let me down?" Poe asked shyly, started to feel the hum buzz inside his ears. The pressure started to enclose around him and he felt trapped. Rey gasped, realizing her grip on him was far to tight.

"Ah! My bad." Rey apologized, quickly letting him softly drop to the ground. Once he had landed he rubbed the sides of his ribs a bit, before pushing himself upright to sit on the floor. Poe then looked over at Rey, who looked like she was focusing on standing still.

"What else can you door with your, er... umm powers?" Rey giggled a bit at his question, even reaching up to touch her face as laughing made her lip tingle. Poe just stared at the tipsy Jedi, waiting for a response. He had already seen her use lightning, control minds, lift huge objects, and heal wounds. What else could she do?

"Want me to show you?" Rey leaned over slightly, her words slurring just enough to indicate she was wavy but not enough to sound belligerent. Poe raised an eyebrow curiously, intrigued.

"Go on..." Poe enticed, maybe even a little husky as he too was tipsy. Not as bad as Rey though, his tolerance was much higher. Rey tilted her head, expecting to move herself only a little bit, but ending up actually swinging her head completely to the left.

"Grab some stuff to throw at me, l-lets go outside." Rey had forgotten about the torrential rains that had just passed by not so long ago. Poe stood up quickly, excited with the opportunity to chuck stuff at Rey without her getting angry. Normally, he would do it just to annoy her.

"You got it." Rey didn't have time to react before he was already turned to find the objects she requested. "Met you outside!" He called back, disappearing into the halls of the ship.

* * *

Rey fell once trying to leave the ship. It was an accident, she told herself after it happened, that it was _"Just a misplaced item." _that she had tripped over. Unbeknownst to her was that she was the one to leave a bag or miscellaneous tools by the cockpit.

Stumbling slightly, she walked down the ramp and into the evening air. Rey took a deep breathe, the world seemed fuzzy, but she could still sense everything on the base. The air was humid, but cooler then before. The storm must have ushered in a cold breeze, which met her skin in a joyful reunion. Closing her eyes Rey could feel inside the base, and inside her. Somewhere, a young couple were arguing about joining the Resistance. Rey could feel their tension radiating from the barracks. Opening her eyes, she saw a fallen tree atop a parked x-wing. Still, everything felt _different _and she couldn't decide if she liked it or not.

The late evening sunlight felt great on her skin, more than usual, and Rey took a deep breath of jungle air. _I wonder what other people think of me. _She though to herself, slightly feeling the world spin. _I'm not like Luke, does anyone even know my story? _That was a sad thought, but did she even care if she was a legend? She was perfectly fine being alone, even if it ate away at her insides. _No, I can't stand being alone! _Her own thoughts conflicted themselves, she assumed because of the alcohol. _I can't be alone, not after meeting my friends. I couldn't stand being away from Ben..._ she paused her own train of thought and just stood still for a moment. _I used to miss when the Force bond wouldn't happen for a while..._ Rey remembered how during her year training with Leia, she had frequent Force bonds with Ben. During that span, their talks ranged from personal problems to arguments and even fights about ideas. Each time they bonded, however, they seemed to grow closer.

"Hey!" Rey jumped, startled by Poe's loud intrusion into the open space near the Falcon. She had been so deep in thought, she hadn't heard or sensed him coming. Poe had seen her many time before just staring off into nothing, so he knew just how to surprise her.

"Do-don't sneak up on me!" Rey said, trying her best not to slur her words. Poe raised an eyebrow, not taking her as serious as he normally world. Her voice when she was drunk was too much for him.

"You ready for me to throw shit at you?" He asked, dropping a bag of what Rey assumed were objects he had picked for her little experiment. Rey turned around to fully face him, stumbling a little to which Poe chuckled at.

"No-" Her answer didn't matter, Poe already had a spoon in hand threw it at her chest while she was wobbly, hoping to catch her off guard and land an innocent blow. Rey saw the glint of metallic, sensing right away the motion behind the thrown object, and sensed it's very trajectory. Reaching out with her mind, she the Force, she quite literally grabbed the spoon and held it in place, without even moving her arm. "Don't try that again." Rey hissed, but Poe just kicked the ground with his foot.

"Damn it," Rey folded her arms "I thought I had you there" He joked, bending over to reach into his sack of goodies. Rey rolled her eyes, he would have to try better then that.

"Better luck next time." Rey said with some sass, not changing her position as Poe pulled out a large ball of something from the bag. It seemed to be metal as Rey saw the reflection of the world behind her in it. He tossed it up and caught it, before gazing at Rey. They stood only a few feet apart, maybe he just had to throw it harder.

"Oh, really?" He gave a little half smile before arching her arm back and tossing the ball at Rey. The throw had some vigor on it, but Rey could easily doge it as she tracked it all the way. She quickly leaned right, allowing the ball to pass to her left. Poe cursed under his breath, but not loud enough for Rey to hear. Rey then got an idea, and reached out to grab the ball, but keep it flying around to eventually come back at Poe, much like Snoke did to her.

"Do you hear something?" Rey asked with a serious, pretending to look around. Poe raised his other eyebrow, stiffening slightly. The ball started too curve around behind Rey at this moment, while Poe just stood confused, evening turning around at one point.

"I don't hear anything." He concluded, just assuming she was really drunk, as she was starting to laugh. "What?" He asked, moments before noticing the ball flying back at him. Poe's eyes widened and he didn't have time to react before it whooshed past his head right as he ducked, but Rey wasn't done just yet. The ball came back around, and stuck Poe on the back of his head. "Ow!" He yelped, wincing as the ball hit him with enough force to be felt, however not enough to hurt him.

"Hahaha" Rey burst into laughter, the ball dropping to the ground. "How was that?" She asked rhetorically her smile wide as Poe got back onto his feet slowly, rubbing the back of his head.

"That was not funny!" He barked, trying to hide his own smile. Looking up at her, he saw her amusement and recognized the trick was something he probably would do if he had the ability to manipulate the Force. Seeing Rey smile, as he had noticed, was a rare but good thing.

"I th-think it is pretty great!" Rye replied, wiping her face while she spoke. When she rubbed her cheek, weird tingles broke out, causing her to giggle as a result. _Alcohol is weird..._ She thought in the moment before Poe got to his feet.

"How much can you lift?" Poe asked, once he rained his balance. Looking at Rey, she was leaning left just a bit and giggling. _What an idiot... _he thought to himself, laughing a bit before calling out to her again. "Reyyyy! How much can you lift!" This time she turned to face him, her smile huge.

"A lot! I think, well- err... I've never really tired lifting huge things!" Rey called back, questioning why they were yelling as the two drunken friends were merely a few yards apart. The large gathering of people had moved into the mess hall due to the storm that had just passed, which left the ground muddy and soggy.

"Show me!" He yelled back, pointing towards the tree that had fallen on an X-Wing. Rey's eyes lit up, even with her state of mind the idea of a challenge was exciting. Pausing for a moment before Rey would reply, she looked around. It felt like she was viewing the world from a different angle, things were moving, it felt slow. _Wait how did I get out here? Oh, huh? Never mind... _shaking her head she nodded.

"Th-that will be easy!" Rey said, before turning to head towards the fallen tree. Rey moved a little too quickly, stumbling on her on feet and falling flat onto her chest into the mud. Poe watched this transpire, and quickly ran up to get her, in case she was hurt. His boots splashed in the mud as he leaned over her.

"Rey?" Poe looked over her, and noticed a faint murmur of laughter coming from her, a good sign for her well being. "You alright?" He asked, just in case she was just laughing from the drinks. Rey propped herself up with her arms, her face and chest caked with the thick frosting of mud.

"Yes! That was funnnnyyyy" Rey chucked some more, her eyes glazed but gleaming. Poe smiled, watching her attempt to clean her face with her arm. Rey got most of the heavy mud off, but some of it had already dried onto her cheeks and chin. If hadn't known any better, he would say she looked adorable.

"You ready now?"" Poe asked after Rey had finished wiping her face off the best she could. Rey nodded, rising to her felt slowly, struggling for balance all the while laughing and giggling. Rey couldn't help herself, knowing now that drinks just made her more bubbly.

"Watch and learn, pilot!" Rey snicked, shocking Poe and herself by the speed and control she had as she darted towards the X-Wing. As she ran, she felt as if she didn't even think about running before she did it. Sensing Poe's footsteps sloshing through the mud not to far behind her, she started to run faster, determined to beat him to the tree even if it was not a race.

"Slow down!" Rey faintly heard Poe call to her from behind her, but ignored it. _He is just trying to win! _Rey thought, enjoying the feeling of the air on her now dirty skin as she ran. Suddenly, she hit the cool metallic side of the X-wing, knocking her backwards with a hard thunk. Landing on her butt, she felt a dull pain on her forehead. "Idiot!" She heard Poe call from behind her. Getting up, she got angry at the stupid park job of the X-wing.

"Who landed this!" She hissed at him, rubbing her head with one hand. It wasn't bad, but enough to leave a mark. Poe caught up to her, catching his breathe momentarily.

"No idea, it must be one of the new editions." Poe replied, raising an eyebrow. Rey felt the drinks in her start to boil over, her head hurt which ruined the happy feeling, and now she felt anger well up inside. _How dare someone leave this in my way! _She lashed out in her mind. Turning to Poe, he could see the change of her emotions in her facial features. Her once loose face was tight, her eyebrows squeezed together and her lip rose in a sneer.

"I'm getting rid of it." Rey said in a hushed, but angry voice, turning back to face the hunk of junk she reached out with one hand. Poe, a little delayed from the alcohol tilted his head in confusion.

"Huh? Now how are we going-" His soon-to-be question was answered as saw Rey's arm begin to shake and the X-wing begin to hover over the ground. Within seconds, there was a metallic groan form the fighter before it was sent hurtling backwards into the uninhabited forest. There was a small rush of wind, and then silence as Rey was slightly pushed back from the violence of her action. Rey gasped for air, it took a lot of energy from her to do that.

"Why.. are- what..." Poe couldn't form the right words and his mouth was left agape from the awe-inspiring, but slightly scary event. Rey's anger soon faded, seeing her friends astonishment. Feeling proud of herself she marched up over to him, a little woozy, and gave him a hard stare.

"Now what do you want to see me do?" Rey asked, as Poe still just stared at the hole in the forest the X-wing had left. "Well..?" Rey persisted, excited about her next challenge from the Ace. Poe looked down at her, and an idea popped into his head.

"Follow me." Poe motioned with his head, but Rey stood straight up he head cranked to one side as if she was listening to someone that Poe could not see. He had seen her do this many times, holding conversations with imaginary people. When she thought she was alone, she would start to converse were herself. At first, Poe found this odd, but then again the whole Jedi thing was odd. So, Rey was just an Odd Jedi friend of his. However, Poe still wanted to know who she was taking too, if anyone at all. As if on cue with Poe's thoughts, Rey answered the question about who she was talking too.

"Ben?"

* * *

Ben strolled outside, squinting from the rays of light cast by the setting sun. The meeting with Finn had felt great, they exchanged information and Ben had felt like they were starting to except his help. He knew deep down inside that they would never forgive him, but as long as he knew that the Resistance trusted his help he would be okay with everything. After all, nothing could ever be bad again, he had Rey.

"Rey." He breathed, watching the crimson shadows dance in the evening light. Sometimes, he would just get lost in thought about her. Back when he was still the Supreme Leader, he would imagine them meeting again when he was alone in his quarters. This time she would take his hand, and they would rule together. He imagined her sweet smell, her smile, everything. He often felt guilty about how he talked about her towards his Officers, lying about how he would destroy her.

He wouldn't, never even considered it. Each time they fought, he was only trying to disarm her. He sensed Rey didn't want to kill him either, until she did, but then she healed him. _That _shows that just like him, she just wanted someone who understood him. The call to light, and the dark.

Ben strolled causally down the runway towards the parked Falcon a long distance away. It was a beautiful evening even after the storm and he wanted to enjoy the things he had denied himself of for so long, like peaceful walks in the evening. His mother had always enjoyed the sunset, she said it reminded her of her brother, Uncle Luke.

Sighing, Ben pushed the bad thoughts away. Only focusing on his feelings for the young Jedi Rey, who he hoped to see before the night was done. Suddenly, he felt a strange break in the serenity of the evening. The Force was disturbed, but not in the bad way, someone was just using a lot of power a moment ago. _Rey! What are you doing? _Ben tried to start a Force connection, initially afraid for her safety.

_Ben! _Sure enough, Rey answered back in a flash. Ben sighed with relief, sensing their connection strengthen he felt her feelings and none of them were of fear or danger. Continuing to walk, he replied through the Force.

_You alright? I felt whatever you just did, caused a bit of disturbance. _He heard Rey laugh awkwardly for a second, it wasn't her normal laugh, which was odd. Ben continued to walk towards where he knew the Falcon was, not paying close attention to his surroundings.

_Ye-yesss! I'm better than ali-alightttt._ Rey's words were slurred, how odd. Ben thought for a second, this is not how Rey would normally act. Whatever the case, she said she was fine. Still, Ben continued to gnaw over why she sounded like that.

_That's great, do you want to visit me tonight? I'm sure I could try cooking. _Ben now offered his idea for how the rest of the night would go. Back in the First Order, Ben never got to share nights with someone close to him, and the loneliness he felt reminded him of how Rey felt on Jakku.

_Uh-yess! Yes, yes! But- errr I'm just. _Ben laughed allowed, what was up with her!? She wasn't making any sense at all, but it was okay, she sounded cut nevertheless. Smiling, Ben picked up the pace to get to the Falcon.

_You're making no sense! _Ben sensed her amusement to his comment, clearly she knew why she did. Maybe she was just trying to pull a prank, either way he was just excited for tonight. Uncle Chewie had tried to teach him how to cook, and now he had the chance to attempt to make a meal for two.

_I-I know, Ben I'm neaaarr the forest, can you s-se-seee me? _Rey questioned, her S's were very prolonged. Ben picked his head up to scan his nearby surroundings. It was true, he could sense her Force aura much better now then before, but he still couldn't see her.

_Yea, no. There is a lot of forest here Rey! _He chuckled at his own words. _You're going to need to be more specific. _Ben picked up walk and continued towards his earlier destination. While waiting for a reply, he felt Rey's confusion regarding her location.

_I'm-I'm errrr- by the Falcon! Near, near it I thinnk?_ Ben shook his head, laughing a bit at how dumb Rey sounded. If it was a prank, she sure was good at acting. Anyways, he would start his search for his Rey somewhere near the Falcon.

_I'm coming to get you. _That's all he needed to say before he closed the Force bond, looking around he spotted the Falcon not too far away. Looking more carefully, he saw two bodied new a hole in the tree lining. With his gt instincts, he knew one way Rey and the other must be one of her friends. Speeding up, he quickly walked towards the two.

* * *

"You can talk to him?" Poe asked, his drunk mind confused about what events had just transpired between her and Ben. Rey turned woozily back towards Poe, leaning to her right in an attempt to stay balanced. Her eyes were bright with a passion he had rarely seen in them, and she knew what he had just saw.

"Som-sometimes, sometimes I can." Rey replied, slurring her words the same as she had for Ben. She was trying her best to say the words right, using all her focus to try and not mess up. Despite her best efforts, the sentences all came out distorted. "it-it is something I can't explaiinnnn." Rey added, nearly falling back over.

"I won't even try to understand... come on, lets get you inside." Poe, in a moment of sobriety, realized Rey was far to drunk to be wandering around the base. She needed to sleep it off, or at least stay in the confines of the Falcon. Motioning with his hand, he reached out to his friend to pull her aside. When his hand touched her arm, Poe felt the presence of another many behind the two.

"Well, what the hell name happened here?" The voice of Ben Solo rang out clear and true. Rey instantly turned around, loosing her balance a bit forcing Poe to help hold her up. The Jedi's eyes were distant and glazed, but alive with warmth at the sight of Solo who was bent over looking at an object on the ground. He picked the black piece up and it hooked to his belt.

"B-Bennn!" Rey's horribly slurred greeting caught Ben off guard. "So nice to see, seee you here!" Rey's eyes glowed with happiness and her uncontrolled Force aura beamed the same energy. Ben's heart melted, even in the drunken state he had never expected Rey to be in, her intentions were so pure towards him it made it hard to contain his joy. No one else had ever made him feel this way, not in a very long time.

"You seem..." Ben's eyes dashed up and down the two of them. "You seem to be taking care of yourselves." Ben smiled, locking eye's with Rey in the process. Poe took his hand off her arm, sensing she was stable enough to stand on her own.

"Just as well as we can be." Poe replied nervously, not sure how Ben would react to their current situation. Any seeds of doubt that Ben might lash out were swept away in the pause of silence that followed his reply. Poe glanced over at Ben to find he was lost in Rey's eyes, while Rey probably had no idea where they were.

"Good." Ben replied to the pilot without taking his eyes off Rey. "I'm glad you were here to take care of her." Ben felt an overwhelming sense of compassion towards Poe, something he hadn't felt towards another man in a long time. Poe could gauge his sincerity just by the tone of his voice, and knew Ben's short time in the Resistance was truly unearthing the formerly lost Ben Solo.

"I can take carree of myself!" Rey's defiant voice broke the moment, she had raised an arm in protest and was leaning to one side slightly. Both men turned to face her, Poe raising an eyebrow while Ben chuckled. "St-stop laughing!" Rey hissed, barely able to contain her own smile. Ben began to laugh harder, and even Poe cracked a smile. "My body is a sacred temple!" Rey stepped forward, trying to approaching Ben but stopped halfway through the first step.

"Clearly." Ben's sarcastic tone sent Rey into cute attack mode, and she ran up towards him. Drunkenly sidestepping a few times before softly ramming into his chest, burring her face him his shirt whilst wrapping her arms around his torso awkwardly. Ben's heart skipped a beat, or perhaps it flew out of his chest.

"I've missed you." Rey spoke into him, her voice muffled by his clothes. Poe couldn't hear what she was saying, but after witnessing the embrace and how Ben's face turned red at her last words, he decided it was best for him to was a great day with Rey, filled of story telling and laughter, but he was partially glad that he didn't have to deal with a wasted Force user anymore. Turning away, Poe quietly crept back to the safety of the Falcon.

"I'm sorry I missed all the fun." Ben replied, wrapping his arms around Rey's sturdy figure. Rey wasn't even small, in reality she was a very average sized woman, but next to Ben she was dwarfed. In the moments that followed his embrace, Ben felt her chest rise and fall with each breathe and he felt her nuzzle more into him.

"Yoouuu, you didn't miss anyt-th-thing." Rey's words were horribly pronounced, despite her hardest efforts to sound normal around Ben. Her mind was fuzzy, but her feelings were amplified by the drinks she consumed, all she felt was an overwhelming compassion and bond between her and the man she leaned into. Even now though, her world was still spinning.

"Good" Ben looked down at the top of her head,, noticing how dirty she looked. "Did you decide to bathe in mud?" He question, breaking the hug. Rey giggled in response, slightly stepping back so Ben could see her chest and face. "Wow." Ben said, seeing how much mud was dried onto her.

"I- I may havvee fell a few times." Rey respond with a childish ease, her eyes glazed but warm and inviting. Ben sighed with a smile, reaching out with his hand to cup Rey's cheek with his palm. When his hand met the side of her face, Rey smiled wide and gazed up into his eyes. "I'm finneeee" She spoke without breaking eye contact.

"As long as you're okay." Ben said with a soft voice, slightly caressing his thumb over her cheek. Rey's smile beamed at him, but her eyes drifted away from his and she started to stagger back, her world spinning. Ben quickly reached out, taking her by her arm to hold Rey steady, all the while she just giggled. "I think I'm taking you to your bed." Ben joked once he got Rey steady on her own two feet, but she still swayed.

"I'll t-take myself whennn..." Rey didn't finish her sentence, she forgot what she was going to say. "N-nevermindddd." Rey couldn't think straight, she could only feel. Processing her feelings, she felt a warm sensation grow within her core and spread to her limbs, but the bubbly sensation's epicenter was her lower belly and between her thighs. Whatever this was, it wasn't a new feeling, but it had never been this strong... at least that's what she could remember.

"Come on, let's go." Ben's voice was mixed with a chuckle as he put an arm around Rey's waist and allowed her to lean fully against him as she stumbled along with him towards her hut. She smiled, the sun had set and now the lights were starting to shine on the base. They bent and twisted as she stumbled along the with Ben supporting her, the air cooling down and the dark growing. The sky was black, and everything started to turn grey as the light slowly faded into night. This transformation from day to night amazed Rey, even though her vision blurred.

"B-Ben! Lo-look at alllll the preetty bugsss!" She called out, seeing the fireflies start to dance in the bushes and trees around them. "If any-any one triesss to hurt them I-I'll beee-beat them!" She took her arm and swung it heavily up to point out the beauty she saw above them. Ben saw, and he took agreed it was pretty, but Rey's appreciating for nature and her protectiveness of things that couldn't defend themselves made his heart fill up with pride and swell with joy.

They walked in silence for a few moments, Rey at one point falling to her knees whilst in a fit of laughter. Ben pulled her up though, asked if she was okay and then continued on their way to her hut. It wasn't a far walk, but Rey was moving awfully slow and Ben didn't want to risk her hurting herself if they went to fast.

"How much was it?" Ben asked as they neared the hangar on which Rey's hut was located. There was a moment of silence, then a stumble from Rey before an answer was formed in her brain. Before she spoke, Ben felt her hands run up and down his side as she gripped him for stability.

"Er-err I don't, remember?" The tone in her voice sounded like she were questioning herself, but nonetheless Rey's accent was sweet and charming despite the slurred words. Ben gave a 'hmph' in reply before they reached the very muddy pathway to ascend to Rey's home on the base. The night had fully encircled the base, and lights from the base and the moon illuminated the path.

"I find your home most pleasant." Ben said, breaking the tension in Rey's mind that was building as she tried to remember how much she had. Quickly her attention turned to her support system Ben's last statement. She looked up at him, a blaze of affection burning in her chest when she saw his soft eyes looking down at her. Rey's eyes were round in the dark, but still glowed with an all to familiar warmth.

"Wha... why?" Rey asked, ever so curious. Perhaps it was a dumb question, as her mind thought about her hut. Everything in there was hers, it was so cozy. It was filled to the brim of everything she enjoyed, so what was there not to like? Meanwhile Ben just took an extra second to admire the beauty of Rey's face. Nothing in the Galaxy could compare, not even ruling it.

"It smells like you." Ben answered back affirmatively, still gazing in Rey's now wider eyes. If her legs hadn't already been so wobbly, perhaps Ben could have noticed her knees grow weak at his words. Her heart swelled to enormous heights, her cheeks grew hot, her lower belly fluttered and Rey felt her heart beat faster all at the same time. _I'm never letting him go..._ Rey's own conscious cut through the haze of her drunken state. Rey now knew this feeling she had was true, and the feelings he had were just the same. In that moment now, even if she was drunk, it was time to put words to their connection.

"B-Ben.. I-" Rey's attempt to reveal her true feelings were cut short by Ben, who had already assessed the challenge of drunk Rey making the trek up a muddy slope. He was going to carry her, and he needed to let her know before he did it as not to scare her when he went to pick her up.

"I'm going to carry you the rest of the way." Rey closed her mouth, a bit sad she hadn't been able to finish her sentence. Before she had enough time to protest the decision to be carried, she was already swept off her feet and into the strong arms of Ben. In her altered state, being off the ground in such a manner made the spin even faster.

The dyad arrived to the front of Rey's hut after a tricky climb up the slippery slope. It was challenging for Ben to focus on placing one foot in front of the other while Rey kept yapping on and on about how she needed to feed the porgs, but forgot so now she felt guilty. While it was cute, it did not help their situation as Ben nearly fell twice on his way up. Now that they had reached the top everything was okay.

"Alright, here we are." Ben announced to the oblivious Rey who had ceased to elaborate on the porgs situation. He gently let her down and she somehow managed to find her feet quiet quickly. Her smile was wide when she realized where she was.

"Home!" Rey said with a smile, hurrying to the door shortly followed by Ben who's arms were burning from carrying her all the way up. It didn't bother him though, the pain was worth her safety. "Be-Ben, this isss where I-I spend m-most of my non-trai-training hourssss." Rey explained with an excited smirk, turning to face Ben before turning back to the door. Nodding to herself, Rey took another step to the unopened door and reached from the handle, missing the first time but found it in the second swoop. Turning the nod, she opened the door.

"After you." Ben said politely as Rey dashed into the room. Laughing, she ran into the table in the center of the room, causing her to yelp and fall as the chairs crashed around her. Ben's eyes grew wide, and he hurried over to aid his fallen friend. Rey sat on her rump, rubbing her arm a bit.

"B-bastard table." She said, looking back up at Ben. "S-should have turnned the light on be-before we ennntered." Ben nodded, for a drunk girl at least Rey made a lot of sense. He reached out and helped her up, pushing the chair out of the way as their eyes adjusted to the dark in their room. Gazing around, he noticed that the desk where they were working on her saber was now empty. Looking down at his belt where the metal object he had picked up was, he remembered what they had used to start to build her new saber with. _Of course, she must have finished it. _Ben smiled at the fantastic work she had down, but before he could compliment her, he heard another crash. Rey had already fallen next to her hammock, where she must have walked to while Ben payed attention to the saber. Rey was knelt besides the bed, her head slumped down to one side in defeat. "I'm tired..." She whimpered, not looking up from her slouched position.

"I think we should put you to sleep." Ben said, heading over to help the very intoxicated Jedi. Rey didn't respond, and when Ben got over to her, she had already passed out. Her mouth hung ajar, and her chest rose up and own in a rhythmic slumber. "Ah, Rey." Ben chuckled to himself. "I wonder what other troubles you would have gotten into, or the ones you already have." Ben softly leaned over to pick her up, placing one arm below her legs and the other around her arms. "You must share your stories with me sometime." Ben knew there was no way she could hear him, or even if she did there was no way she would remember any of it.

Sighing, Ben gently placed her limp body in the hammock. Taking one last long look at Rey's beautiful face, cast pale in the moonlight that filtered in from the window. He smiled again, finally achieving some form of peace with himself for caring for a defenseless person. Maybe, maybe there was hope for him to finally gain redemption for all his misdeeds. And this, this was certainly a start. Looking down at her body, Ben noticed a blanket at the end of the bed.

Carefully, he pulled the soft sheet up and over Rey's sleeping form before tucking it under her chin. Ben paused again, gazing at her face. She looked so peaceful, it was almost to much for him to bear. Stepping back, he made his way over to a chair and sat down, intent on keeping vigil over Rey in case she was in need of his assistance. However, it wasn't long too, before even Ben slipped under into the seas of sleep. But this time, instead of the nightmares, he dreamed only of Rey, and her peace.

* * *

"So that's what all happened, before I showed up. Hmph." Ben spoke, leaning back in his chair after seeing Rey's entire day play out before him. "You were quite the handful there." Rey nodded, gazing back up at him, her expression lost in thought. She could care less about what had happened with Poe, that was fun but obsolete. What really mattered to her, was how she had felt about Ben, how Ben had treated her, and the things she was going to say to him. "You okay there Rey?" Ben asked after observing the long silence and her distant gaze.

"Yes, I'm fine." Rey blinked, snapping out of her thoughts. "More than fine, actually, I'm great." She felt that strange warm glow return to her lower stomach, building at the thought of the man in front of her. All of the overwhelming emotions from last night came crashing back onto her like a tidal wave. Everything buzzed, her arms lit up with goosebumps, and her thighs began to tingle. Rey knew what she needed to do, she needed to finish what she had started last night. In a split second before Ben could even respond to her last statement, Rey put words to all her feelings.

"Ben, I love you."

* * *

**So there you have it. The longest wait for the longest chapter. **

**This chapter has surpassed 10,000 words, so you better like it. **

**I tried to be funny while at the same time hint at darker, and more serious undertones I've had throughout this entire story. I feel at times it starts to drag on, but all that detail was needed for the chapter to be complete. In my opinion I think this new flashback kind of style chapter was great, it gave me a lot more freedom to write. **

**Anyways, I owe you an apology nonetheless. **

**I am sorry it took so long for me to get this one out. **

**School has been chaotic, I've been getting really tired really early lately and I've had many assignments that I needed to work on outside of school. This entire month plus last month as really gone by so fast, I've barely had any time for my own personal freedoms. **

**This may come as sad news, but expect longer update times. I have basically no days off until April, and for that I am sorry. **

**I truly am, you guys are the best, I feel so bad for making you wait this long. That is another reason why the chapter is so long, I feel like I owe it to you guys. **

**So there you have it, my largest chapter/update ever. **

**I'm at 82 reviews right now.**

**If you can get me to 95 it would make me feel so much better with all the stress at school. **

**I just hope you know that this story is not dead, I am not giving up on it. I owe it to myself and you guys to see it through, I've just been ungodly busy. **

**Again, I'm really sorry. **

**Expect longer update times...**

**And again, lets try for 95 reviews. It would make my week so much better to know you guys are still supporting this story. **

**Yours truly, **

**London. **


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